Category Archives: Metrology

SEMICON Japan 2018, the largest and most influential event for the electronics manufacturing supply chain in Japan with more than 70,000 attendees expected, opens tomorrow at Tokyo Big Sight. Themed “Dreams Start Here,” The Dec. 12-14 exposition and conference gathers industry leaders and visionaries for insights into the latest technologies, innovations and trends in the electronics industry, including emerging opportunities in SMART applications and the all-new SMART Application Zone.

With artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) transforming industries and applications, Japan is uniquely positioned to meet the electronics industry’s new demands with a strong customer basis in automotive and robotics, and considerable 200mm and smaller wafer fab capacity for the MCU, logic, power, and MEMS and sensor devices key to SMART applications.

The SuperTHEATER highlights SEMICON Japan with seven forums in three days:

  • Opening keynotes on an “Alternative Future Envisioned by New Leaders” feature Motoi Ishibashi, CTO at Rhizomatiks, and Toru Nishikawa, president and CEO at Preferred Networks
  • Semiconductor Executive Forum with “Executive Viewpoints from Three Top SMART Era Companies: Toshiba Memory, GLOBALFOUNDIRES and Qualcomm
  • SEMI Market Forum, “Growing China and Global Semiconductor Ecosystem,” with presenters from IHS Markit and SEMI
  • SMART Transportation Summit, “Future Created by SMART Innovation,” with executives from Toyota, Honda, Denso, Bosch and Infinion
  • SMART Technology Forum, “The Front Line of AI,” with speakers from The University of Tokyo, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and DefinedCrowd
  • Manufacturing Innovation Forum, “The Front Line of EUV lithography,” with ASML, Carl Zeiss and Xilinx
  • Mirai Vision Forum, “Technology and the Future of the Body,” with speakers from Leave a Nest, MELTIN MMI and Man-Machine Synergy Effectors

SMART Application Zone

On the SEMICON Japan show floor, 70 companies will exhibit in the new SMART Application Zone in East Hall 3. Connecting SMART industries with the semiconductor supply chain, the SMART Application Zone will showcase emerging technologies and vertical product applications generating new semiconductor demand across SMART Transportation and SMART Manufacturing. Key exhibitors include:

  • SMART Transportation – Bosch, Tesla Motors and Toyota Motor
  • SMART Manufacturing – IBM, Japan Semiconductor, Lapis Semiconductor, Microsoft, NEC, Preferred Networks, Sony, SAS and SIEMENS

Register now for SEMICON Japan. For a detailed agenda, please see the “SEMICON Japan Schedule-at-a-Glance.

The Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) is proud to announce the award recipients honored at the 2018 GSA Awards Dinner Celebration that took place last evening in Santa Clara, California. For almost a quarter century, the GSA Awards have recognized the achievements of top performing semiconductor companies in several categories ranging from outstanding leadership to financial accomplishments, as well as overall respect within the industry.

Individual Awards:

Dr. Morris Chang Exemplary Leadership Award
The GSA’s most prestigious award recognizes individuals, such as its namesake, Dr. Morris Chang, for their exceptional contributions to drive the development, innovation, growth and long-term opportunities for the semiconductor industry. This year’s recipient is Dr. Lisa Su, President and CEO of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD).

Rising Women of Influence Award
This newly initiated award recognizes and profiles the next generation of women leaders in the semiconductor industry that are believed to be rising to top executive roles within their organizations. This year’s award was presented to Vanitha Kumar, Vice President of Software Engineering at Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

Company Awards:

Most Respected Public Semiconductor Companies
GSA members identified the winners in this category by casting ballots for the industry’s most respected companies, judged for their vision, technology and market leadership. Below are this year’s recipients:

Most Respected Public Semiconductor Company Achieving Greater than $5 Billion in Annual Sales:

NVIDIA Corporation

Most Respected Public Semiconductor Company Achieving $1 Billion to $5 Billion in Annual Sales:

Marvell Semiconductor

Most Respected Public Semiconductor Company Achieving $500 Million to $1 Billion in Annual Sales:

Silicon Labs

Most Respected Emerging Public Semiconductor Company Achieving $100 Million to $500 Million in Annual Sales:

Nordic Semiconductor

Most Respected Private Company:

SiFive Inc.

Best Financially Managed Semiconductor Companies
T

hese awards are derived from a broad evaluation of the financial health and performance of public fabless and IDM semiconductor companies. Below are this year’s recipients:

Best Financially Managed Company Achieving up to $1 Billion in Annual Sales:

Holtek Semiconductor Inc.

Best Financially Managed Semiconductor Company Achieving Greater than $1 Billion in Annual Sales:

Micron Technology, Inc.

Start-Up to Watch
GSA’s Private Awards Committee, comprised of successful executives, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, chose the winner by identifying a promising startup that has demonstrated the potential to positively change its market or the industry through innovation and market application. This year’s winner is Movandi.

As a global organization, the GSA recognizes outstanding companies headquartered in the Europe/Middle East/Africa and Asia-Pacific regions having a global impact and demonstrating a strong vision, portfolio and market leadership. Two awards were presented in this category:

Outstanding Asia-Pacific Semiconductor Company

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Outstanding EMEA Semiconductor Company

Infineon Technologies AG

Analyst Favorite Semiconductor Company
Two analyst pick awards were presented based on technology and financial performance as well as future projections:

NVIDIA Corporation was chosen by Rajvindra Gill, Managing Director at Needham & Company, LLC

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) was chosen by Mark Lipacis, Managing Director at Jefferies, LLC
This year’s ceremony was attended by close to 1500 global executives in the semiconductor and technology industries.

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), representing U.S. leadership in semiconductor manufacturing, design, and research, today announced worldwide sales of semiconductors reached $41.8 billion for the month of October 2018, an increase of 12.7 percent from the October 2017 total of $37.1 billion and 1.0 percent more than last month’s total of $41.4 billion. Monthly sales numbers are compiled by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization and represent a three-month moving average. Additionally, a newly released WSTS industry forecast was revised upward and now projects annual global market growth of 15.9 percent in 2018 and 2.6 percent in 2019.

“The global semiconductor industry posted solid year-to-year growth in October and is on pace for its highest-ever annual sales in 2018, but growth has moderated in recent months,” said John Neuffer, president and CEO, Semiconductor Industry Association. “Although strong sales of DRAM products continue to boost overall market growth, sales in all other major product categories also increased year-to-year in October, and all major regional markets posted year-to-year gains. Double-digit annual growth is expected in 2018, with more modest growth projected for 2019.”

Regionally, year-to-year sales increased in China (23.3 percent), the Americas (14.1 percent), Europe(7.0 percent), Japan (5.5 percent), and Asia Pacific/All Other (3.7 percent). Compared with last month, sales were up in the Americas (2.8 percent), Asia Pacific/All Other (1.8 percent), Japan (0.4 percent), and Europe (0.2 percent), but down slightly in China (-0.4 percent).

Additionally, SIA today endorsed the WSTS Autumn 2018 global semiconductor sales forecast, which projects the industry’s worldwide sales will be $477.9 billion in 2018. This would mark the industry’s highest-ever annual sales, a 15.9 percent increase from the 2017 sales total of $412.2 billion. WSTS projects year-to-year increases across all regional markets for 2018: the Americas (19.6 percent), Asia Pacific (16.0 percent), Europe (13.2 percent), and Japan (9.6 percent). In 2019, growth in the semiconductor market is expected to moderate, with annual sales projected to increase by 2.6 percent. WSTS tabulates its semi-annual industry forecast by convening an extensive group of global semiconductor companies that provide accurate and timely indicators of semiconductor trends.

SEMI announced today that the Industry Strategy Symposium (ISS) 2019 will take place January 6-9 at Half Moon Bay’s Ritz-Carlton Hotel with the theme “Golden Age of the Semiconductor: Enabling the Next Industrial Revolution.” ISS is the year’s first executive check-in, bringing together leading analysts, researchers, economists, and technologists for insights on the forces impacting the semiconductor industry. The annual symposium offers executives a unique platform for identifying growth opportunities and gaining industry intelligence to help them ensure that their business plans and forecasts are based on up-to-the-minute market conditions. Registration for ISS 2019 is now open.

Major developments are transforming the extended supply chain — artificial intelligence (AI), intelligent vehicles, augmented and virtual reality, and seemingly limitless connectivity within the cloud. Collaboration across an expanding ecosystem and advanced technical innovations are giving rise to advanced electronics that continue to raise performance and power-consumption requirements and drive heterogenous integration.

“It can be hard to lead to where you’ve not been, particularly at this most dynamic time in business,” said David Anderson, president of SEMI Americas. “Executives from across the supply chain historically have asked for this timely ISS program in order to gauge what the year ahead looks like. To help management get the very latest picture, and to compare notes to most confidently tune their operations and sales, ISS is a tremendous level set for the new year.”

ISS 2019 is the first of seven conferences comprising SEMI’s inaugural Technology Leadership Series of the Americas. Aligned from coast to coast over one year, the series is designed to foster critical discussions on the short- and long-term influences and opportunities to the $2 trillion emerging markets.

ISS 2019 highlights include:

Keynotes

  • Dr. Jo de Boeck, chief strategy officer at IMEC, will share how nanotechnology’s “magic” will enable advanced applications for SMART mobility, SMART cities, infotainment and healthcare
  • Dr. Ann Kelleher, senior vice president for the technology and manufacturing group at Intel
  • Jim Talent, former U.S. Senator, will discuss the evolving U.S.-China strategic relationship

Economic trends and market perspectives affecting the chip industry

  • Executives and economists from Harvard Kennedy School, Gartner, Hilltop Economics, Linx, Amazon, Bank of America, Rockwell Automation, Ericsson, Selexis, Enthought and VLSI Research

Technology, manufacturing and industrial revolution discussions

  • Executives and CTOs from Google, TEL, Micron, Intel Labs, Applied Materials, Xperi, McKinsey, DECA Technologies, Carbon and Brewer Science

For more information about ISS, click here.

The semiconductor manufacturing industry is fighting to attract, educate, and retain the necessary talent for its continued growth. A significant workforce gap of up to 10,000 global positions stretches the industry’s ability to meet the world’s already demanding technology needs. To solve this challenge, SEMI, the global electronics manufacturing association, is launching an audacious and innovative campaign to raise industry awareness and attract students and recent graduates that don’t yet know about the immense opportunities available to them in semiconductor manufacturing.

Semiconductors are the brains and memory of all modern electronics. Their incredible processing power has made breakthroughs possible in communication, transportation, and medicine, powering everything from smartphones to space travel. Whether you’re driving a car, surfing the internet or using a computer, semiconductors drive technological innovation. Global semiconductor revenue has grown by over $100 billion in the last four years and is projected to surpass $0.5 trillion by 2019.

The campaign, You’re Welcome, speaks to how fundamental, yet underappreciated, this technology is. It includes a suspenseful, action-filled movie trailer that shows what happens when scientists, engineers, and mathematicians make semiconductors to save the world from the brink of disaster. The video also takes viewers behind-the-scenes of a semiconductor facility, or fab, which brings together cutting-edge STEM fields to develop the world’s most advanced technology. The campaign’s website provides information about the value and production of semiconductors, as well as a career guide that showcases the wide variety of opportunities available with companies such as Intel, Samsung, Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, and the more than 2,000 SEMI member companies.

The campaign is just one piece in SEMI’s comprehensive workforce development plan. The plan engages students as early-on as 4th grade, inspires and motivates them through high school and college, and provides pathways to professional careers, building a pipeline to fill the short-term and long-term needs of the industry. Through the You’re Welcome campaign, SEMI is addressing the increasingly urgent workforce need by taking a completely new, never-before-seen approach to talent recruitment by leveraging high-interest areas of entertainment, media and storytelling to excite students about the industry’s role in society.

SEMI, the global industry association representing the electronics manufacturing supply chain, today applauded the United States and China for agreeing to take first steps to reduce trade tensions. The U.S. plans to delay tariff increases on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports, China has vowed to increase U.S. market access, and both parties are planning talks over the course of 90 days to address current frictions.

“Everyone, businesses and consumers alike, relies on devices powered by semiconductors,” said Ajit Manocha, president and CEO of SEMI. “Tariffs on products threaten jobs, stifle innovation, curb growth, and compromise U.S. competitiveness.”

With intellectual property critical to the semiconductor industry, SEMI strongly supports efforts to better protect valuable IP. SEMI believes, however, that U.S. tariff increases will ultimately do nothing to change China’s trade practices. SEMI has long supported efforts to reduce and end trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

“While this is a first step, it is encouraging to see presidents Trump and Xi committed to working together,” Manocha said. “We look forward to continued negotiations that produce an agreement that not only removes tariffs altogether, but also satisfactorily addresses bilateral economic concerns.”

The semiconductor industry relies heavily on international trade. Since the tariffs have been in force, companies have faced higher costs, greater uncertainty, and difficulty selling products abroad.

Since action against China was announced in March, SEMI has engaged heavily with the Trump administration, submitting written comments and offering testimony on the importance of the free trade to the industry as well as the damaging effects of tariffs on Chinese goods. SEMI estimates that tariffs would have cost semiconductor companies more than $700 million annually.

Last month, SEMI issued “10 Principles for the Global Semiconductor Supply Chain in Modern Trade Agreements,” calling for their adoption in existing and new trade deals, including frameworks for a U.S.-China agreement.

In the face of the microelectronics industry’s unprecedented challenges and opportunities with artificial intelligence (AI) and new markets outside the historic semiconductor audiences, SEMI announces the Technology Leadership Series of the Americas. The seven-part sequence of related strategy and technical conferences comprises the world’s largest and most comprehensive approach for examining and fabricating future innovations that can fuel a higher quality of life for the planet.

As the era begins with the volume of the world’s data doubling every 12-18 months, a global brain trust of hundreds of industry experts has provided inputs for a coherent, step-by-step process that will position the microelectronics industry to navigate the future.

With an objective to reduce learning curves and shorten product times to market, key interest groups have rallied with SEMI in the past 24 months to multiply interactions with the supply chain. In turn, these exchanges are calculated to increase the members’ respective technical ROIs. Technology communities include the Fab Owners Alliance (FOA), FlexTech, MEMS & Sensors Industry Group (MSIG), Electronic System Design Alliance, as well as global partner associations such as IEEE and SAE International, which leads technical learning for the mobility industry.

As a result, more than 2,100 global market-related businesses have teamed with SEMI to help structure content for the Technology Leadership Series of the Americas.

Aligned from coast to coast, across a 12-month span, the series is designed to foster the most critical discussions for connecting both the short-term and long-term influences impacting the $2 trillion worth of emerging markets. The series further aims to remove guesswork about which of the world’s rapidly rising number of conferences provides the highest ROI for the senior executive, engineer-scientist and sales manager.

“There’s been lots of talk around AI, its potential enhancements for nearly all markets, and which priorities should be next for maximizing those. To facilitate measurable industry progress, the approach for this series is to fit together the most critical puzzle pieces – strategy, design, new materials and manufacturing technologies – that will deliver the most impactful roadmap for the coming decades,” said David Anderson, president of SEMI Americas and series co-author. “The experts have concluded that focal points identified for these topic-exclusive conferences will each serve as a stepping stone – or enabler – for the roadmap’s most important areas. As with previous industry efforts, what hasn’t changed is that the path to success hinges on collaboration by partners from across the supply chain.”

Target topics will address the leading edges of industry knowledge and practices, including up-to-the-minute market forecasts and deep dives into game-changing issues and advancements. Six strategy and technical conferences will culminate in an unmatched integration of technologies and partners at SEMICON West, July 9-11, 2019, in San Francisco.

The Series’ special conferences are:

  • Industry Strategy Symposium (ISS) Jan. 6-9 – will kick off the new year with analysis of new and emerging demand drivers for new architectures, new logic and memory, new streams of investment and how to advance their arrivals and ensure longevities that enable the next industrial revolution.
  • Flexible & Printed Electronics and MEMS & Sensors Technical Congress (FLEX/MSTC) Feb. 18-21 – the co-located events will provide the most comprehensive technical conference as FLEX focuses on the design and manufacture of flexible electronics, including sensors, IC integration and substrates, while MSTC focuses on the technology behind the trends in MEMS and sensors for autonomous mobility in mobile devices, IOT, drones, and autonomous transportations.
  • Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Conference (ASMC) May 6-9 – will improve the industry’s advanced manufacturing strategies and methodologies through a combined sharing of highlights and insights by device makers, equipment and materials suppliers and academics. Women in Semiconductors will hold their third annual workshop.
  • Strategic Materials Conference (SMC) Sept. 2019 – will share the latest developments from around the world in strategic materials that will be vital for new markets, system creation, heterogeneous integration and packaging.
  • MEMS & Sensors Executive Congress (MSEC) Oct. 2019 – will present how the next generations of MEMS and sensors will be designed and produced to meet on-going growth for emerging markets beyond the historic microelectronics customer base.
  • International Technology Partners Conference (ITPC) Nov. 3-6 – will advance productive trans-pacific relationships to help avoid threatened supply chain prosperity, leveraging thought-leadership and relationship-building programs for executive-level engagement.

At the peak of the collaborative series, SEMICON West 2019 will provide renowned global presenters and hands-on demos, at both strategic and technical levels, for up-to-minute predictions and breakthroughs on upcoming trends and enablers. Based on direction from SEMI’s members, the five vertical application areas of AI and Data, Smart Transportation, MedTech, Smart Manufacturing and Industrial Automation, plus workforce development, will be featured at the semiconductor industry’s flagship event.

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), representing U.S. leadership in semiconductor manufacturing, design, and research, today announced the addition of Silicon Labs (NASDAQ: SLAB) as an SIA member. Silicon Labs President and CEO Tyson Tuttle was elected to the SIA board of directors at the association’s board meeting on Nov. 29. Silicon Labs joins several other companies that have become SIA members within the last year: Cree, NVIDIA, Xilinx, Arm, SK Hynix, and KLA-Tencor.

“Silicon Labs is a major player and leading voice in our industry, and we’re thrilled to have them in the SIA tent,” said John Neuffer, SIA President and CEO. “SIA has a 40-year history of advancing the semiconductor industry’s interests in Washington and capitals around the world. Our work to advance policies that will promote growth and innovation in our industry will be greatly strengthened by the addition of Silicon Labs as a member, and we are excited to welcome Tyson Tuttle to the SIA board.”

Tyson Tuttle has been instrumental in shaping Silicon Labs’ strategic and technological direction for more than 20 years. After becoming CEO in 2012, Tyson laid the foundation for a cultural shift to serve broad-based markets with a greater emphasis on software and tools, enabling customers to simplify IoT system design. As CEO, Tyson has transformed Silicon Labs into a leading provider of IoT connectivity solutions, with more than half of the company’s revenue stemming from the IoT. He has more than 25 years of semiconductor experience and holds more than 70 patents in RF and mixed-signal IC design. Tyson received a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering in 1989 from Johns Hopkins University and an M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering in 1992 from UCLA.

“Smart government policy is critical to the continued strength of the semiconductor industry, the tech sector, and the broader economy,” said Tuttle. “It is a true pleasure to represent Silicon Labs on the SIA board and to work alongside my colleagues to make meaningful progress on issues of great importance to us all.”

SEMI, the global industry association representing the electronics manufacturing supply chain, today reported that third quarter 2018 worldwide semiconductor manufacturing equipment billings dropped 5 percent from the previous quarter to US$15.8 billion but are 11 percent higher than the same quarter a year ago.

The data are gathered jointly with the Semiconductor Equipment Association of Japan (SEAJ) from over 95 global equipment companies that provide data on a monthly basis.

The quarterly billings data by region in billions of U.S. dollars, quarter-over-quarter growth and year-over-year rates by region are as follows:

 
3Q2018
2Q2018
3Q2017
3Q18/2Q18
(Qtr-over-Qtr)
3Q18/3Q17
(Year-over-Year)
China
3.98
3.79
1.93
5%
106%
Korea
3.45
4.86
4.99
-29%
-31%
Taiwan
2.90
2.19
2.37
33%
23%
Japan
2.41
2.28
1.73
6%
40%
North America
1.27
1.47
1.50
-14%
-15%
Rest of World
0.98
0.96
0.74
2%
32%
Europe
0.85
1.18
1.06
-29%
-20%
Total
15.84
16.74
14.33
-5%
11%

Source: SEMI (www.semi.org) and SEAJ, December 2018

 

The Equipment Market Data Subscription (EMDS) from SEMI provides comprehensive market data for the global semiconductor equipment market.

Covalent Metrology, a provider of analytical services to advanced materials innovation companies, is pleased to announce a new partnership with Rigaku Corporation, a global leader in X-ray analytical instrumentation.

In a joint declaration, Covalent and Rigaku reveal a first-of-its-kind collaboration agreement demonstrating a mutual commitment to support American high-tech industries with the most advanced metrology capabilities in the world.

Under the terms of this agreement, Rigaku, “The world’s leading supplier of X-ray metrology technology,” will be supplying Covalent with several state-of-the-art instruments for their new facility in Sunnyvale, California. This collaboration agreement provides Covalent with exceptional analytical service capabilities and Rigaku a North American demonstration facility located in the heart of Silicon Valley.

“This partnership will significantly expand Covalent’s product offering.  Rigaku is a proven leader in this field and has earned its outstanding reputation over many decades of technology innovation.  Working together, our respective customers will benefit from being able to access the most advanced technology, staffed by world-class experts and delivered with unprecedented customer service,” said Craig Hunter, Covalent’s Founder and CEO.

The Rigaku Semiconductor Metrology Division designs and manufactures X-ray based measurement tools to solve semiconductor manufacturing challenges. With over 35 years of global market leadership in the semiconductor industry, Rigaku metrology tools employ X-ray fluorescence (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray reflectometry (XRR) and Critical-Dimension Small-Angle X-ray Scattering (CD-SAXS) techniques, enabling everything from in-fab process control metrology to R&D for thin film and materials characterization.

Products include in-line, high-throughput X-ray monitoring tools for measuring critical process parameters such as film thickness, density and roughness, XRF spectrometers for thickness and composition determination, and total-reflection XRF spectrometers (TXRF) with integrated vapor phase decomposition (VPD) for trace contamination monitoring.

“We believe deeply in the power of American ingenuity, and we are focusing our investments in areas where we can have a direct impact on innovation. Rigaku is committed to advancing cutting-edge technologies that deliver solutions for yield enhancement and process development,” said Kiyoshi Ogata, Rigaku Senior Vice President. “Covalent Metrology’s experienced leadership, top-notch technical team and business model innovations altogether make them the ideal partner for our Silicon Valley Semiconductor Lab. We are proud to be a part of this collaboration and look forward to enabling new customer designs.”

Covalent Metrology provides imaging and characterization services to support R&D, defect analysis, and quality control for companies in semiconductors, solar, medical devices, MEMS and other industries.  Covalent’s analytical services include atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray XRD/XRR, high-resolution X-ray diffraction (HR-XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), spectral ellipsometry, optical profilometry, UV-VIS-NIR spectrophotometry, TEM, XPS, TOF-SIMS and many others.