Category Archives: LEDs

April 17, 2008 — The U.S. House of Representatives’ Science and Technology Committee held a hearing yesterday, April 16, to review the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI, which is up for reauthorization) and proposed draft legislation. (See Small Times’ article on the NNI’s recently released strategic plan.)

Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN) made an opening statement that emphasized the benefits and national significance of nanotechnology. “The term ‘revolutionary technology’ has become a cliché, but nanotechnology truly is revolutionary,” he said.

“The cooperation and planning processes among the participating agencies in the NNI have been largely effective. The NNI has led to productive, cooperative research efforts across a spectrum of disciplines, and it has established a network of national facilities for support of nanoscale research and development,” Gordon noted.

The draft legislation encompasses recommendations from Committee members and stakeholders, witness testimony from previous NNI hearings, and formal reviews of NNI in 2002 and 2006. The proposed draft changes to the program include:

— strengthening the planning and implementation of the environment, health, and safety component

— increasing emphasis on nanomanufacturing research and commercialization

— creating a new focus on large-scale R&D projects in areas of national significance

— enhancing support for K-16 educational programs related to nanotechnology.

“I am honored to have led a series of hearings on the commercialization of nanotechnology, the importance of educating students about the nanotechnology field, and the potential environmental and health risks of nanotechnology,” said Subcommittee Chairman Brian Baird (D-WA). “I look forward to working with Chairman Gordon on the reauthorization bill and to ensuring that the federal government remains an important partner in our country’s efforts to stay at the forefront of this unique and cutting edge science.”

The NNI was authorized by the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-153). The 2003 statute established formal interagency planning, coordinating, and budgeting for NNI. Currently, twenty-six federal agencies participate in NNI, 13 of which contribute to NNI’s research and development budget. The legislation requires formal reviews of NNI’s program content and implementation by the National Academies and an advisory committee of non-government experts.

“Although the NNI has from its beginnings realized the need to include activities for increasing understanding of the environmental and safety aspects of nanotechnology, it has been slow to put in place a well designed, adequately funded, and effectively executed research program to address this issue,” added Gordon. “The environmental and safety component of NNI must be improved by quickly developing and implementing a strategic research plan that specifies near-term and long-term goals, sets milestones and timeframes for meeting near-term goals, clarifies agencies’ roles in implementing the plan, and allocates sufficient resources to accomplish the goals.”

The following witnesses testified (click their names to access their testimonies) in yesterday’s hearing: Mr. Floyd E. Kvamme, Co-Chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology; Mr. Sean Murdock, Executive Director for the NanoBusiness Alliance; Mr. Joseph Krajcik, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Education at the University of Michigan; Dr. Andrew Maynard, Chief Science Advisor of Projects on Emerging Nanotechnologies at the Woodrow Wilson Center; Dr. Raymond David, Manager of Toxicology at the BASF Corporation; and Dr. Robert R. Doering, Senior Fellow and Research Strategy Manager for the Texas Instruments.

As the committee of jurisdiction, the House Science and Technology Committee has held many hearings throughout this and past Congresses to improve the program in an effort to maintain the U.S.’s competitive lead in nanotechnology.

In March, the Research and Science Education Subcommittee held a hearing focused on the importance of translating the results of nanotechnology research into commercial products and processes. In recognition of the significance of nanomanufacturing, the draft legislation establishes steps to increase the number of nanotechnology related projects under the Small Business Innovation Research Program and the Technology Innovation Program, authorized under the America COMPETES Act, which was signed in to law August 2007.

(April 15, 2008) SINGAPORE &#151 SEMI is gearing up for the SEMICON Singapore, which takes place May 5-7, 2008 at the Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre. Southeast Asia is reportedly the leading region for test, assembly and packaging (TAP), so the event is expected to draw global semiconductor manufacturing executives from that sector of the industry. Regional growth in solar and photovoltaics led the organization to also feature those technologies in this year’s program. This marks SEMICON Singapore’s 15th anniversary celebration since its first exposition in 1993.

The flexible MCM12 can reportedly handle a range of die sizes and presentation modes. It features a fully programmable dispensing system, and automatic pick-up and ejector tool changing systems. The bondhead achieves up to 800g force and is programmable to automatically change up to 14 different pick up tools. The linear motor driven, gantry-style platform delivers high accuracy and throughput. In flip chip operation, the machine is capable of +/- 10 µm accuracy.

The Pegasus S200A automatic 200mm prober from Wentworth Laboratories, Inc. is the latest addition to the company’s wafer prober line. Intended for high-volume wafer probing of light emitting diodes (LEDs), it also tests discrete devices and wafers up to 200-mm. Pegasus S200A is integrated with production LED testers to bring a fully automatic test platform to the LED production test floor.

The prober uses LabMaster control software, an intuitive graphics user interface which centralizes real-time monitoring and test setup of the prober, accessories, and test progress. Mapping capability provides real-time yield analysis of both the wafer and lot under test, and advanced utilities reportedly permit the experienced user to design sophisticated test routines. LabMaster enables the Pegasus S200A to seamlessly integrate with other testers using standard communication protocols, while simultaneously communicating with all prober accessories.

Cascade Microtech’s 20 GHz P30 Pyramid Probe for high-volume wafer testing of RF filters and switches uses unique membrane probe technology to reportedly achieve higher yields, lower maintenance and minimal down time. The P30’s lithographic probes accuracy are said to alleviate uncontrolled impedance, which is characteristic of other probe types, and their compact size enables multi-site testing.

Apr. 11, 2008 – Four Taiwanese chip assembly firms have received approval from the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) to send nearly $90M in investments to business interests in China, ahead of what may be an increase in cross-strait business deals following the appointment of a more liberally minded Taiwan government.

As part of the deal, the four firms — Lingsen Precision Industries, Kyec Yuan Electronics, Siguard Microelectronics, and Siliconware Precision Industries — will reciprocate by investing a combined $1.5B domestically over the next three years, notes the Taiwan Economic News.

Days ago, Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE) authorized an additional $30M capitalization in its Shanghai affiliate ASE (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., and has applied with the MOEA to add another $90M to the operation, which opened last June with $21.6M in capital, and would have ~$200M in capital once the two expansion plans are completed. The business’s major customers include local companies SMIC and Shanghai Hua Hong NEC Electronics, plus TSMC, Broadcom, TI, and Intel.

The applications for the other four firms had been slow to progress through MOEA red tape — but their approval now suggests a coming wave of new investment activity greenlighted by a new government, led by president-elect Ma Ying-jeou of the challenging KMT party (which also gained a big majority in recent primary elections)

More specifics about the new MOEA investment approvals:

– Lingsen wants to add $10M capitalization to its mainland Chinese subsidiary;
– Kyec Yuan plans to increase capitalization in a mainland subsidiary by $20M;
– Siguard is investing $67M in a mainland semiconductor company;
– Siliconware is investing $50M into a mainland Chinese subsidiary.

Apr. 11, 2008 – UK-based Oxford Instruments says it has acquired Silver Spring, MD-based Technologies and Devices International, a developer of hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) technology and processes (described as an alternative to metal-organic chemical vapor deposition [MOCVD] techniques), for $1M in cash, plus future considerations based on tool sales by July 2012 that could boost the deal to $6M (Oxford also will assume $2.2M of TDI debt). TDI will remain at its US facility and expand R&D efforts, and will still be led by president Tatiana Dmitriev and R&D head Alexander Usikov.

The impetus of the deal is growth in the high-brightness LED manufacturing market, which are ~10x more efficient than tungsten bulbs and 2x as efficient as compact fluorescent lighting in domestic and commercial lighting. The firm cited analyst predictions of 20% CAGR for the HB-LED market through 2012.

The deal helps Oxford expand its HB-LED offerings to the epitaxy sector, complementing its Plasmalab range of etch and deposition tools. The company noted in a statement that its tools cover three of the nine HB-LED manufacturing steps, but adding TDI helps address this fourth step “that has historically been the most time consuming and costly,” with tools that enable HB-LED suppliers to cut manufacturing times by 25%.

On the books, the TDI acquisition also supports Oxford’s plan to double the size of its Plasma Technology group over five years and add 10 percentage points to EBIT margins, noted CEO Jonathan Flint, in a statement.

TDI posted a pretax net loss of $0.8M for the 12 months ended June 2007, vs. $1.0M in gross assets. Losses are expected to continue through the next year while tools are developed, but the acquisition should be “earnings enhancing” in the second year.

“We value this partnership with Silan Azure and remain committed to developing advanced systems to improve yields and provide long-term ROI for our global HB-LED manufacturers.” said Michael Stubelt, director of marketing for ESI’s NWR Division.

(April 9, 2008) Hudson, NH&#151 Vectron International, producer of frequency control, sensor, and hybrid product solutions, will partner with Public Service of New Hampshire (PSNH) to host an Energy Fair for Vectron employees and the general public at its Hudson facility on Tuesday, April 15 from 10:00 a.m.

As the technology and design of semiconductor devices advance, the need to test their reliability and gauge their lifetime becomes acute. Common reliability tests, such as electromigration (EM) and time-dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB), require the device under test (DUT) to be put under thermal and electrical stress over long periods of time to accelerate failure mechanisms. Traditionally, these measurements were carried out after the DUT had been packaged, a costly process that delays time to data and lengthens the device design cycle. By moving these tests to wafer level with the PM300WLR, reliability data is obtained sooner, and the device design cycle and thus time to market can be improved significantly.

(April 8, 2008) San Jose, CA &#151 ESI announced that its New Wave Research (NWR) Division has received a multiple system order from Hangzhou Silan Azure Corp., Ltd. for its AccuScribe 2112 laser-scribing equipment. China-based Silan Azure

April 3, 2008 — A new series, which begins airing on public television stations in 17 states plus the District of Columbia this month, features discussion of nanotechnology and its potential impacts.

The Power of Small series is led by award-winning journalist John Hockenberry, public radio news anchor and former NBC News correspondent. The series explores nanotechnology in three areas – Privacy, Health and Environment — from scientific, philosophical and public policy perspectives.

You can find a schedule of PBS stations slated to air the series in its entirety and preview the series at the show’s website.