Category Archives: Top Story Right

September 7, 2012 – Intel is lowering its 3Q12 outlook citing sluggish demand amid challenging macroeconomic conditions. The chipmaker says 3Q12 sales will come in about a billion dollars short of expectations, in a range of $12.9-$13.5 billion instead of $13.8-$14.8B, and gross margins will be about a point lower than projected (62% instead of 63%). The firm also said its capital spending for all of 2012 will be on the low end of its $12.1-$12.9B guidance, as it "accelerates the re-use of existing equipment to the 14nm node." Notably, the company also pulled back its full-year forecasts, which it will update in its 3Q earnings report due Oct. 16.

"[We are] seeing customers reducing inventory in the supply chain versus the normal growth in third-quarter inventory, softness in the enterprise PC market segment, and slowing emerging market demand," Intel said in a statement.

Analysts have for weeks been pointing out warning signs about how a variety of macroeconomic concerns are impacting the semiconductor sector. Both Intel and AMD have been predicting a slowdown in 3Q12. "We anticipate the worst 2H for PC sales since inception," warns Citigroup’s Glen Yeung, citing not just the macroeconomic factors but also increasing tablet competition and undetermined Windows 8 timing. "Multiple challenges in the PC space, with slower ultrabooks, weaker OEM commentary and Win8 pricing [are] affecting a more cautious OEM-ODM outlook," adds Vijay Rakesh from Sterne Agee.

Intel’s downgrade though, provides new clarity on just how dismal the environment is becoming. "It

September 5, 2012 – Despite the gloomy economy and softness in consumer LCD products, suppliers of thin-film transistor liquid crystal displays (TFT-LCD) expect moderate growth in both sales and shipments in 2012, according to DisplaySearch. The analyst firm projects sales of TFT-LCD panels to increase 13% to $85.3B, and shipments to rise 8% to 757M units, triggered by strong demand for mobile PCs and LCD TVs.

"The growth in shipments and revenue this year shows that the TFT LCD industry is recovering from price declines and supply chain inventory adjustments, although the recovery looks very modest," stated David Hsieh, VP of the greater China market for NPD DisplaySearch. "Panel makers are quickly adapting to the shifts in demand and developing new technologies, features, and sizes. Chinese LCD makers are rapidly increasing production, and Korean, Japanese, and Taiwanese manufacturers are restructuring and deploying new technologies and processes to improve costs and display performance. It is clear that the TFT-LCD industry has not yet reached maturity but is simply entering a new chapter."


Large-area TFT panel shipments, in millions. (Source: NPD DisplaySearch)

Notebook PC panel shipments are forecast to grow 13% in 2012 thanks to strong promotions for existing models and the recently introduced ultrabook models championed by Intel, according to DisplaySearch. Total tablet PC panel shipments are expected to rise 61% Y/Y. Tablet PC panel makers are targeting shipments of 72.8M units of 9.7-in. panels, including the iPad 2 and new iPad, and private-label tablets. Shipments of 10.1-in. tablet panels are expected to exceed 17M in 2012, while shipments of 10.6-in. panels — most notably Microsoft’s Surface tablet — are ramping strongly in 2H12.

After declining for the first time ever in 2011, LCD TV panel shipments have been expected to swing back to around 6% growth in 2012, due to stronger demand in China: replacements, new models, and the country’s energy subsidy program. LCD TV panel prices rebounded in 2Q12 and prices for some panel sizes are still rising due to tight supplies. New TV panel sizes (28-in., 29-in., 39-in., 50-in., 58-in., 60-in., and 65-in.) also are playing a key role in shipment growth. LCD panel revenue growth will help improve overall large-area LCD panel revenues in 2012, notes DisplaySearch.


Large-area TFT panel revenues, in US $B. (Source: NPD DisplaySearch)

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September 4, 2012 – In an analysis of quarterly IC market growth rates, IC Insights pulls up an unusual phenomenon: the performance during the second calendar quarter takes the spotlight in years of better growth, which is counter to historical norms.

Averaging IC market growth over the past 30 years, the third quarter saw the highest Q/Q increase at almost 6%, while 1Q was typically the softest (-1.4%) — nothing surprising there, given seasonal trends of a pre-holiday-season pickup and then letdown. But categorizing the results as "good" vs. "bad" years of IC market growth (defined as 10% annual growth) surfaced a curious trend. In bad years, the first half of the year typically takes the brunt of the slowdown, while the second half usually rebounds. But in good years, the second quarter typically shows the highest sequential growth rate, with 3Q and 4Q slowing but still healthy, and even typically-soft 1Q levels stay in the black (3.1%).

How does this play out in in today’s IC environment? In 2012, IC sales saw negative growth in 1Q but are expected to be in the black through the rest of the year. IC Insights currently forecasts a 10.5% increase in 2H12 vs. 1H12. (Note that others aren’t so upbeat about 2012’s prospects; analyst firm IHS iSuppil now projects a razor-thin decline in 2012 IC sales.)

Another trend the firm teases out of the data: the IC market is becoming increasingly dependent upon seasonal growth in 3Q12. (Not surprising as electronic systems sales have shifted more heavily from business to consumers in the past few decades.) Two of today’s biggest markets are PCs and cellphones, both of which are highly seasonal in nature. Bottom line: expect the IC market to continue its pattern of stronger 3Q seasonality.

Meanwhile, 4Q IC sales have been trending down for the better part of three decades — though in 2012 the expected introduction of new products (smartphones, tablet PCs, ultrabooks) timed for late 3Q12 might give 4Q12 sales a rare sequential boost, by as much as 3% this year, the firm notes.

Average sequential quarterly IC market growth rates, 1983-2012 (f). (Courtesy of IC Insights)

Three leaders in their respective fields have formed a technology alliance to bring a new glass cutting technology to market. InnoLas Systems GmbH licensed process technology developed by FiLaser LLC and will use ultra-short pulse lasers produced exclusively for InnoLas by LUMERA LASER GmbH. This complete turnkey system designed for glass, sapphire and brittle materials cutting will be available exclusively through InnoLas’ worldwide sales network.

Conventional laser cutting is based on rapid heating leading to vaporization and material removal. This process is not only slow, but it also leads to unwanted micro-cracks and a rough surface finish. Material cut with conventional laser processes require post-processing in order to remove the unwanted damage. These subsequent grinding and polishing steps are costly and time consuming. Filament cutting, on the other hand, uses ultra-short laser pulses in the picosecond range that cut brittle materials via plasma dissociation. This new process ensures lower surface roughness, high bend strength, and faster processing speed. This new laser cutting technology works especially well on chemically strengthened glass and sapphire, which have been difficult to cut with conventional methods. Filament cutting thus enables a higher quality, throughput and yield in the production of touchscreen displays for smart phones and tablet PCs. Further areas of application include Si, SiC, and GaAs at very high speeds.

Richard Grundmüller, CEO InnoLas: “This innovative laser cutting technology gives us access to new markets, where we can leverage our core competencies in laser machining and glass handling in order to offer our customers a clear competitive edge.”

Jeffrey Albelo, CEO FiLaser: “We have created a novel laser process technology that is at the nexus of physics and materials science. It is purely disruptive and will provide our customers with a compelling motivation to acquire this capability. We believe the combination of these leaders in their respective fields will produce world-class results and will aid in putting this capability into the hands of our customers with speed and 24/7/365 reliability. Looking ahead, we have great expectations as the application potential spans far beyond glass, sapphire, and wafer singulation."

Dr. Achim Nebel, CEO LUMERA LASER GmbH: “LUMERA LASER is delighted to be part of this new partnership. LUMERA has been the leader in ps-laser systems for quite some years and our lasers’ capabilities are a perfect fit for this new application. Up to now the field of glass cutting had mostly been the domain of high average power CW lasers. The FiLaser technology utilizes unique aspects of our ultra-fast lasers providing a fast and high quality solution.”

Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC), a university-research consortium for semiconductors and related technologies, is poised to celebrate its 30th anniversary at its annual TECHCON conference Sept. 10-11.

Hosted in Austin, Texas, the technology conference features next-generation research progress among hundreds of university students, faculty and industry experts. The conference brings together those involved in microelectronics research to exchange news about the progress of new materials and processes created by SRC’s network of more than 100 of the top engineering universities.

At the conference, SRC will also celebrate its 30-year anniversary of successful collaboration between industry leaders and university researchers to conduct basic research intended to accelerate semiconductor advancements that enable future generations of chip technology.

Two recognized experts—Charles Vest, president of the National Academy of Engineering and president emeritus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and John Kelly, senior vice president and director of IBM Research—recently expressed strong support for SRC accomplishments over the decades at a SRC 30th anniversary banquet in June.

“SRC has strategically brought together industry, government and academia to both advance technology and help to educate and train the next generation of engineers, scientists and leaders,” said Vest.

“(SRC) has perfected the management of creating complicated technology alliances that others only can hope to imitate,” said Kelly. “Moreover, in these times of tight budgets— both in industry and government—the SRC continues to find new ways to partner between the public and private sector to maximize the value of every dollar spent on both sides.”

SRC President Larry Sumney applauds luminaries like Vest, Kelly and the many others for their support in helping SRC build a successful collaboration among industry, academia and government.

“Collaboration among industry, academia and government accelerates knowledge advancements, lowers risk and enables growth and innovation to continue for the benefit of industry and society as a whole. It represents a win-win-win,” said Sumney. “Industry taps into the expertise and pipeline of talent in academia. University researchers gain understanding of industry needs. And government investments leverage the industry investments and result in research that enables new applications in electronics, health, energy, mobility, transportation and many other areas.”

Along with showcasing the progress of critical industry-guided university research, SRC annually announces two significant awards at TECHCON for professors in SRC-supported, chip-related research. Selected by SRC’s member companies and the SRC staff, the award-winning faculty and research teams are honored for their exemplary impact on semiconductor productivity through cultivation of technology and talent.

At TECHCON 2011, Stanford University professor Robert Dutton received the SRC Aristotle Award for outstanding teaching in leading his research team to pioneer the development of a suite of technology computer-aided design (TCAD) tools for simulation and modeling of integrated circuit fabrication processes.

Additionally, University of California, Berkeley research engineer Alan Mishchenko and professor Robert Brayton received the SRC Technical Excellence Award for their SRC-funded work advancing the synergy of synthesis and verification steps used in testing and validating semiconductor chips.

More than 9,000 students have been prepared by SRC programs, professors and mentors for entry into the semiconductor business. These students provide a path for technology transfer and a source of relevantly educated technical talent for the industry.

“Semiconductors are the building blocks of the digital age, and university research has been instrumental in advancing the industry,” said Dr. Steve Hillenius, SRC executive vice president. “The highly valued researchers and teams we are showcasing and honoring at TECHCON are driving the semiconductor industry forward.”

Check out last year’s coverage of TECHCON, featuring video interviews with students and professors taking part in semiconductor research projects, as well as talks with SRC about the conference and the research organization’s energy initiative.

FEI (NASDAQ: FEIC) announced two new Helios NanoLab systems, the 450HP and 1200HP DualBeam systems, which include new capability that meets the critical requirements for semiconductor process development at the 28nmdevice geometry node and below.

The Helios NanoLab 450HP and 1200HP DualBeam systems can prepare 15nm thick samples with less than a 2nm damage layer in 90 minutes, two times faster than competitive alternatives. iFast automation software maximizes ease-of-use while ensuring consistency among multiple operators and systems. QuickFlip grid holders facilitate inverted sample preparation to improve sample quality while maintaining high throughput. Cell Navigation software allows automated navigation within non-unique memory arrays that can locate a single designated bit cell in a 50nm lateral field. Together, these features enable a robust process to prepare high quality, ultra-thin lamella across multiple tools in a consistent manner—independent of operator skill level.

 “Developing new processes and technologies that include shrinking geometries, new materials and novel device architectures and ramping those processes to high-volume production quickly are driving unprecedented increases in the demand for TEM analysis,” stated Rudy Kellner, vice president and general manager, Electronics Business Unit, FEI. “TEM samples must be ultra-thin, of the highest quality, and generated in a routine and consistent manner across a fleet of tools. Typically, as samples get thinner, the difficulty becomes time to results, operator skill level and subtle differences among equipment. We have designed the 450HP and 1200HP systems to overcome these issues. Ultimately, the system’s ability to yield more good samples at double the throughput allows for potentially significant reductions for both the time-to-answer and the cost-per-answer.”

August 24, 2012 – IHS iSuppli is downgrading its outlook for 2012 global semiconductor revenues, shifting from slight single-digit growth to predicting the industry’s first annual decline since 2009. The firm blames a weakening economy that has eroded demand for PCs and related components.

The decline is "a major event for the global semiconductor market," said Dale Ford, senior director at IHS. Even though electronics markets remained very weak through all of 2011, the firm never projected a full-year revenue dropoff, he noted.

IHS iSuppli’s most recent forecast for 2012 chip sales growth, issued in July, was 3.0% to $320.8B. In April the firm had inched up its outlook to 4.3% (to $324.6B) citing strong ongoing consumer demand for wireless products like cellphones and media tablets. Its original 2012 forecast issued in January was for 3.3% growth.

Preliminary global annual semiconductor revenue growth
forecast, in % change of US $. (Source: IHS iSuppli)

Global chip revenues declined a seasonally typical -3.6% in 1Q12, but increased barely 3% in 2Q12. In a separate report issued this week the firm declares this is "a troubling sign for the health of the semiconductor market," attributed to the Eurozone crisis, slowing manufacturing growth in China, and stubbornly highly unemployment in the US.

Revenue guidance from key chip suppliers suggests 3Q12 will be slightly better — 6% Q/Q growth — but the firm says that is just further "subdued expansion" that won’t prevent the market from contracting this year.

Late-year introduction of ultrabooks and ultrathin PC platforms will give the PC market a boost, but macroeconomic malaise will exert too much pressure on PC demand, for both consumer and corporate spending, the firm notes.

IHS iSuppli still feels confident in a strong rebound in 2013, sticking with its projection of 9% Y/Y chip sales growth, assuming economic conditions improve. Nevertheless, it couches its optimism with persistent "multiple high-impact events" that present possible risks to create a strong economic downturn, from the Eurozone crisis to slowing Chinese growth to US tax and budget expirations to Middle East turmoil.

August 24, 2012 — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted a rule mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to require companies to publicly disclose their use of conflict minerals that originated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) or an adjoining country.

The regulatory reform law directed the Commission to issue rules requiring certain companies to disclose their use of conflict minerals that include tantalum (Ta), tin (Sn), gold (Au), or tungsten (W) if those minerals are

August 23, 2012 — Optoelectronics researchers at the Ferdinand-Braun-Institut (FBH) ordered an Optofab3000 for Laser Bar Facet Coating from Oxford Instruments Plasma Technology. The advanced ion beam deposition (IBD) tool will deposit high-quality optical thin films for high-power and high-brightness laser diodes (LDs) at 0.63-1.12µm wavelengths, based on III-V semiconductor layer structures.

Photo 1. An Optofab3000 ion beam tool.

The tool offered both high-quality deposition and an advanced in-situ optical monitor, said Dr. Götz Erbert, head of the Optoelectronics Department at FBH. The tool can also achieve R&D tasks as well as pilot production, which the institute performs in some cases.

Photo 2. Inside an Optofab3000.

The Optofab3000 ion beam tool is scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2012.

Learn more at http://www.oxford-instruments.com/Pages/home.aspx.

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August 22, 2012 – BUSINESS WIRE — The second half of 2011 saw slow growth for gallium arsenide (GaAs) substrates in semiconductor and related devices, as well as a shift away from GaAs as a handset switch technology, according to Eric Higham, director of the Strategy Analytics GaAs and Compound Semiconductor Technologies Service (GaAs). Consequently, demand for semi-insulating GaAs bulk substrates fell by 4%.

However, the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan disrupted the supply chain, driving up substrate pricing and overall revenue to nearly $230 million, according to Asif Anwar, director in the Strategy Analytics Strategic Technologies Practice (STP). Disruptions from the earthquake increased substrate prices in the short-term, but as they diminish, modest market growth and substrate price declines will return, Anwar said.

Strategy Analytics reports in “Semi-insulating GaAs Substrate Markets: 2011-2016” that total demand for semi-insulating (SI) GaAs bulk substrates from manufacturers such as Freiberger Compound Materials (FCM), Hitachi Cable, AXT, Sumitomo and Dowa reached slightly more than 32100 kilo square inches (ksi) in 2011.

Strategy Analytics indicates demand and revenues will return to slow growth, hitting nearly 39000 ksi and $240+ million in revenues by 2016.

Also read: As LEDs ramp, GaAs wafers shift from SI to SC type

The Strategy Analytics forecast segments the SI GaAs bulk substrate market by diameter, geography, growth method, application and supplier. The report also addresses trends and recent developments in these segments. Strategy Analytics, Inc. provides timely and actionable market intelligence focused on opportunities and disruptive forces in the areas of Automotive Electronics and Entertainment, Broadband Connected Home, Mobile & Wireless Intelligent Systems and Virtual Worlds. For more information, please visit http://www.strategyanalytics.com/