Category Archives: Wafer Level Packaging

August 26, 2011 – BUSINESS WIRE — Cabot Corp. (NYSE:CBT) will sell its Supermetals business to Global Advanced Metals (GAM), a supplier of tantalum ore to the Supermetals business. GAM will pay a minimum of $400 million in total cash consideration, and should close the transaction by end of CY2011.

The Supermetals business manufactures high-end products for the electronics, aerospace, chemical manufacturing and other industries.

Cabot will focus its resources on growth initiatives in other businesses, aiming for adjusted earnings per share of $4.50 in 2014, said Patrick Prevost, Cabot president and CEO. Cash proceeds generated from the sale will allow Cabot to pursue potential acquisitions.

Over the past eight quarters, the Supermetals business recorded an average quarterly EBITDA of $13 million. The transaction includes an initial cash payment of $175 million when the transaction closes. Additional cash consideration, including contingent payments based on the future performance of the acquired business, will total a minimum of $225 million and be paid within a two-year period. Cabot will maintain its mining operation in Manitoba, Canada where the company mines cesium for its Specialty Fluids Business and tantalum.

Bryan Ellis, GAM CEO, predicts that the Supermetals business will help GAM create a tantalum-focused enterprise with strong future potential. The businesses share an ethical "conflict-free" product sourcing, employee safety and strict environmental responsibility.

Goldman, Sachs & Co. is the lead advisor for the transaction. Cabot Corp. was also advised by J.P. Morgan.

Cabot Corporation is a global specialty chemical and performance materials company. Cabot makes capacitor materials, drilling fluids, fumed silica, and other materials. The company’s website is: www.cabot-corp.com.

Global Advanced Metals supplies tantalum ore for the electronics industry, specifically mobile phones, digital cameras, laptops, computer monitors and televisions. The company

August 24, 2011 — The SMTA will host sessions and courses with Amkor, Research in Motion, and TechLead Corporation on package-on-package (PoP) 3D stacking at SMTA International (SMTAI), October 16-20 in Fort Worth, TX.

Lee Smith, Amkor Technology, will present "Package on Package (PoP): Past, Present and Future" during the opening session on October 18. Assemblers have integrated PoP surface mount stacking increasingly over the last 5 years, notes Smith. Smartphones and tablet computers rely on PoP for signal processing and memory architectures. Over 11 million packages are surface-mount-stacked each week, he adds. The session is open to all attendees.

Also plan to attend "Assembly Solutions for Next-generation Package on Package (PoP) Requirements and Process" and "Reliability Characterization of PoP Materials and SMT Processes," chaired by Lee Smith of Amkor Technology and "Process and Reliability Characterization of PoP Materials and SMT Processes," chaired by Sheldon Schwandt of Research In Motion.

"Assembly Solutions for Next Generation Package on Package (PoP) Requirements and Process" and "Reliability Characterization of PoP Materials and SMT Processes" will feature Intel Corporation, Qualcomm, and Rambus Inc. speakers.

"Process and Reliability Characterization of PoP Materials and SMT Processes" speakeres include Amkor Technology, Flextronics, and Universal Instruments Corporation.

Charles Bauer, Ph.D., TechLead Corporation, will instruct a half-day tutorial, "3D Assembly…CSP to PoP to Board," covering fundamental to advanced technologies for stacked chip packaging and assembly, as well as stackable packages. Topics include the challenges of die thinning and thin die attach, mixed technology die attachment and bonding, flip chip, multi-level wire bonding, TAB and TSV technologies.  

Details about SMTA International can be found online at http://smta.org/smtai.

The SMTA membership is an international network of professionals in microsystems, emerging technologies, and related electronic assembly business operations.

Subscribe to Solid State Technology/Advanced Packaging

Follow Advanced Packaging on Twitter.com by clicking www.twitter.com/advpackaging. Or join our Facebook group

August 23, 2011 – Marketwire — SATS provider STATS ChipPAC Ltd. (SGX-ST:STATSChP) honored its top materials and equipment suppliers in 2010, for the fourth annual Supplier Excellence Awards.

Also read: Intel honors 28 top suppliers, "achievers"

STATS ChipPAC chose four suppliers for their best overall performance in cost, delivery, quality, technology, service, and support: NAMICS Corporation, Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Tanaka Kikinzoku International K.K., and Verigy Ltd. (of Advantest Group).

Six suppliers received an "Outstanding Award in Service and Support" recognition for service, support and responsiveness: BE Semiconductor Industries N.V., Daewon Semiconductor Packaging Industrial Co. Ltd., DISCO Corporation, Heraeus Materials Technology LLC, Nitto Denko Corporation, and Rudolph Technologies Inc.

Two companies were given site awards for outstanding service and support for STATS ChipPAC’s operations in China and Singapore: LG Chem Ltd. (for STATS ChipPAC Shanghai) and Teradyne Inc. (for STATS ChipPAC Singapore).

These suppliers show an "intense focus and commitment to performance, quality, cycle time, and cost," said Wan Choong Hoe, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, STATS ChipPAC, stating that a strong supply chain enables quality, cost-effective semiconductor packaging and test.

STATS ChipPAC Ltd. provides semiconductor packaging design, assembly, test and distribution services. STATS ChipPAC is listed on the SGX-ST. Further information is available at www.statschippac.com.

Subscribe to Solid State Technology/Advanced Packaging.

Follow Advanced Packaging on Twitter.com by clicking www.twitter.com/advpackaging. Or join our Facebook group

August 22, 2011 – PRNewswire — National Instruments (Nasdaq: NATI) added per-pin parametric measurement unit modules and source measure unit modules to its PXI platform for semiconductor characterization and production test: NI PXIe-6556 200 MHz high-speed digital I/O with PPMU, the NI PXIe-4140 and NI PXIe-4141 four-channel SMUs.

PCI eXtensions for Instrumentation (PXI) is an open specification governed by the PXI Systems Alliance defining a rugged, CompactPCI-based platform optimized for test, measurement and control.

The NI PXIe-6556 high-speed digital I/O module generates and acquires a digital waveform at up to 200MHz or performs DC parametric measurements with 1% accuracy on the same pin. NI says the addition will simplify cabling, decrease test times and increase tester density. Timing skew is nearly eliminated by a built-in timing calibration feature. The NI PXIe-6556 comes with an option to switch in another NI SMU for higher precision, and engineers can initiate parametric measurements based on hardware or software triggers.

The NI PXIe-4140/41 SMU modules provide four SMU channels per PXI Express slot, up to 68 SMU channels per PXI chassis in 4U of rack height. The SMU modules offer sampling rates of up to 600,000 samples per second, targeting high-pin-count device test. The NI PXIe-4141 boasts SourceAdapt technology to custom tune the SMU output response to any given load, for stability with minimal transient times.

The modules are compatible with NI LabVIEW system design software.

National Instruments offers software and modular cost-effective hardware for measurement and test. Visit www.ni.com/lp/semiconductor to learn more.

Subscribe to Solid State Technology/Advanced Packaging

Follow Advanced Packaging on Twitter.com by clicking www.twitter.com/advpackaging. Or join our Facebook group

AUgust 23, 2011 – Marketwire — Semiconductor packaging and test provider STATS ChipPAC Ltd. (SGX-ST: STATSChP) welcomed Pasquale Pistorio as an advisor to its Board of Directors. He will join the Board, with shareholder approval, after STATSChP’s next annual general meeting.

Pasquale Pistorio developed the Italian microelectronics company the SGS Group into an eventual merger with the French Thomson Semiconducteurs to eventually form STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM), where he served as president and CEO. On his foundation’s website, Pistorio is said to have "championed the cause of Europe’s microelectronics industry." He’s served on Fiat and Chartered Semiconductors Boards and in 2004 chaired the Technology Platform group of a new European initiative called ENIAC (European Nanoelectronics Initiative Advisory Council). Pistorio is a member of the United Nations Information and Communications Task Force. He was recently announced as the recipient of the 2011 IEEE Robert N. Noyce Medal, sponsored by the Intel Foundation, for contributions to, and leadership in, the technology, business and environmental development of the global semiconductor and electronics industry.

STATSChP’s announcement supersedes the Company’s SGX-ST announcement number 00040 dated 1 July 2011.

STATS ChipPAC Ltd. provides semiconductor packaging design, assembly, test and distribution services. STATS ChipPAC is listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited ("SGX-ST"). Further information is available at www.statschippac.com.

Subscribe to Solid State Technology/Advanced Packaging.

Follow Advanced Packaging on Twitter.com by clicking www.twitter.com/advpackaging. Or join our Facebook group

August 19, 2011 – Compugraphics International is widening its line of photomasks to include larger-area products up to 16 in2. The move is a result of the UK firm’s Jan 2011 acquisition of Germany’s Masken Lithographie und Consulting (ML&C), which focuses on large-area maskmaking and services (e.g. mask cleaning).

The expanded offerings come as a direct result of customer demand for larger photomasks for applications including wafer-level packaging and other semiconductor and optical uses, noted Compugraphics GM Brian Young, in a statement.

ML&C, established in 1992, "has won a reputation as one of the world’s leading mask shops," and its addition "gives us the ability to produce high-quality masks up to 16-inch square to meet client demands," he said.

August 17, 2011 — The annual Known Good Die (KGD) conference will address semiconductor die testing, assembly, manufacturing, and business challenges, with the tagline "KGD in an Era of Multi-Die Packaging and 3D Integration." The KGD Conference takes place November 10 in Santa Clara, CA.

The event is co-located with another MEPTEC event, "2.5D, 3D and Beyond: Bringing 3D Integration to the Packaging Mainstream," set for November 9.

"Multi-function 3D, vertically stacked or multichip packages" are increasingly incorporated into mobile consumer products, such as tablets and smartphones, notes Jonathan Davis, president of the Semiconductor Business Unit at SEMI, which co-presents KGD with MEPTEC. Complex package configurations rely heavily on KGD to meet functionality, time-to-market, and cost goals.

For 18 years, the KGD conference has marshaled technical experts, managers and business development professionals from around the world for an interactive exchange on the latest developments in the die product industry.

The KGD conference sessions will cover such topics as KGD test, handling, delivery, standards, current methods, options and infrastructure.

For more information on the Known Good Die conference, visit: http://meptec.org/meptecknowngoodd.html.

SEMI is a global industry association serving the manufacturing supply chains for the microelectronic, display and photovoltaic industries. For more information, visit http://www.semi.org.

MEPTEC provides a forum for semiconductor packaging and test professionals to learn and exchange ideas that relate to assembly, test and handling. For more information, visit http://meptec.org/.

Subscribe to Solid State Technology/Advanced Packaging.

Follow Advanced Packaging on Twitter.com by clicking www.twitter.com/advpackaging. Or join our Facebook group

August 17, 2011 – BUSINESS WIRE — Nemotek Technologie, wafer-level camera maker, uncrated the Exiguus, with a VGA wafer-level camera integrating wafer-level optics assembled with CMOS image sensors (CIS).

The Exiguus H11-A1 camera boasts Nemotek’s thinnest form factor, at 1/10 of an inch tall. It can be integrated into PC tablets, laptops, handsets, automotive applications, and other designes.

The Exiguus H11-A1 is reflowable, offers full functionality and uses one element or two surface lenses. Offering automatic and manual control functions, the camera features 640 x 480 pixel resolutions. High-end features include color saturation and correction, edge enhancement and lens shading correction. Glass wafers withstand harsher environments than traditional plastic wafers.

The Exiguus product line will soon include another camera "specifically dedicated to medical applications," said Hatim Limati, sales and marketing vice president of Nemotek Technologie.

Nemotek owns the optics to packaging of its wafer

August 15, 2011 — Johnstech International Corporation is rereleasing the configurable ROL 200K (Kelvin) Test Contactor as the ROL 200KR Kelvin-Ready Test Contactor for both pad and leaded style devices, highlighting the system’s ability to accomplish "much more than precision measurements of device signal," according to the company