USA

12/01/1996

USA

SEMI has presented its Awards for North America for technological contributions to the semiconductor industry. The Materials award was given to Richard Brewer, founder and president of Advanced Chemical Systems International. He was recognized for his role in commercialization of the first integrated circuit in 1964, when he worked at Texas Instruments. The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Kenneth Levy, chairman, CEO, and founder of KLA Instruments for his 25 years in the industry. He was cited recently by retired SEMI president William H. Reed as a major architect of the strong international relationships between US equipment manufactureres and their customers and counterparts around the world. The Equipment award went to a UV lithography team consisting of John Bruning, president of Tropel Corp.; Robert Akins, president of Cymer Laser Technologies; and Chris Sparkes, director of lithography, and Larry Thompson, VP of R&D, both of Integrated Solutions Inc.

Nanometrics Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, has introduced thin-film thickness metrology standard sets called NanoStandards. Six highly stable, thermally grown oxide films, ranging in thickness from 10-1000 nm, are provided on either 150- or 200-mm diameter high-grade silicon wafers. The individual standards are certified and NIST-traceable. The standards are used to calibrate Nanometrics` line of thin-film metrology tools. The 150-mm standard is priced at $2550, while the 200-mm standard is $3900.

GDSI Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, a company offering wafer backside grinding services, has added wafer dicing and pick-and-place business to its operation. With fully automatic dicing and pick-and- place equipment, GDSI is able to dice any size from 15 mil2 to 500 mil2 on 100- to 200-mm wafers. GDSI`s facility in Sunnvyale has the capacity to backgrind 90,000 wafers and dice 2.5 million/month. GDSI has a Class 500 cleanroom with full ESD safeguards.

Kulicke & Soffa Industries Inc. (K&S), Willow Grove, PA, a supplier of semiconductor assembly equipment, has acquired Semitec Inc., a privately held manufacturer of dicing saw blades used in the semiconductor assembly process. Semitec, Santa Clara, CA, had sales of $4.5 million in calendar year 1995. The acquisition is valued at approximately $5.0 million, payable in cash and/or common stock of Kulicke & Soffa. The acquisition of Semitec is in line with K&S`s plan to grow its Packaging Materials Group.

Ibis Technology Corp., Danvers, MA, has been awarded $900,000 in Phase II contracts under the Small Business Innovative Research program. A two-year $300,000 National Science Foundation Phase II program will focus on developing technology that will allow early detection of unwanted contamination during the oxygen implantation process, to improve the quality and yield of commercial SIMOX wafers. A $600,000 Defense Special Weapons Agency Phase II program will focus on the development of a commerically available thin buried oxide substrate that will be radiation tolerant for end-user circuit fabrication. As part of its expansion of manufacturing capacity, Ibis has qualified its second Ibis 1000 SIMOX implanter. The construction of the implanter was funded by Motorola. Its SIMOX material output will be primarily dedicated to serving Motorola`s production requirements over a multiyear period, with wafer prices reflecting amortization of this funding.

AlliedSignal`s Advanced Microelectronic Materials unit and NanoPore Inc., Albuquerque, NM, will announce a new joint venture, Nanoglass, that will develop and commercialize precursor solutions to nanoporous silica thin films for low-k microelectronic applications. The 50/50 venture will link AlliedSignal`s expertise in thin films, application development, and sales with NanoPore`s aerogel-like nanoporous silica technology, which does not require supercritical processing conditions. Initial work will focus on optimization and characterization of the proprietary films, which offer thermal stability and SiO2 composition. NanoPore is a startup founded by University of New Mexico professor Douglas Smith.

Tencor Instruments, Mountain View, CA, said it would cut its employee base by 15% as a result of slowing orders. Tencor laid off about 130 regular employees and about 90 contract workers, and has also implemented expense reductions, a hiring freeze, and reductions in base pay for corporate officers and vice presidents.

ANADIGICS Inc., Warren, NJ, a supplier of gallium arsenide integrated circuits, is expanding its manufacturing and administrative facilities in Warren Township, NJ. The company will renovate and occupy a vacant building adjacent to its headquarters. An investment of about $35 million will include a new cleanroom and equipment. The new 70,000 ft2 plant will be ready for office occupancy in early 1997, with manufacturing phased in through 1998. The company qualified for GPU Energy Business Enhancement Incentives and received a New Jersey Business Employment Improvement Program grant.

SubMicron Systems, Allentown, PA, will reduce its workforce by 15%. The company said results for the quarter ending Sept. 30 were lower than expectations, as a result of shipment delays due to customization that had to be performed on some systems. In addition, some deliveries scheduled for the fourth quarter have been bumped into 1997.

SEMATECH has purchased a POLARIS 2000 microlithography cluster from FSI International Inc., Minneapolis, MN, for use in its 193-nm lithography development effort. The 2000 is an advanced photoresist processing system, which - in contrast to track systems that use multiple handlers - consists of independent modules arranged around a cleanroom robot. Each module is independent and requires no mechanical interface. This methodology, along with advanced software and process technology, allows the POLARIS 2000 cluster to meet the demands of i-line and deep UV lithography.

ASM Lithography (ASML), Tempe, AZ, has delivered and installed its first PAS 5500/300 stepper, to Micron Technology Inc.`s pilot line Fab IV in Boise, ID. The system is a deep UV machine capable of processing eighty 200-mm wafers/hour with resolution of 0.25 micron or better. Micron will use the stepper for continued development of next-generation semiconductor ICs, such as advanced sub-0.25-micron technologies. The PAS 5500/300 system can deliver conventional and off-axis illumination using ASML`s AERIAL illuminator, which the company developed with its optics partner Carl Zeiss.

Therma-Wave, Fremont, CA, has received a multiple-system order valued at more than $9 million from Siemens Semiconductor Division. The order was for Therma-Wave`s Opti-Probe film thickness measurement and Therma-Probe ion implant monitoring systems, which Siemens will use to manufacture a variety of IC devices, including 16-Mbit DRAMs initially using 0.35-micron technology. Opti-Probe is used for film thickness measurements at phase II of Siemens` Dresden, Germany, 16- and 64-Mbit DRAM facility, and at its new North Tyneside, England, 16- and 64-Mbit DRAM wafer fab. The rest of the Opti-Probe systems will be shipped to Siemens` production facility in Regensburg, Germany.

Veeco Instruments Inc., Plainview, NY, and Schmitt Industries Inc., Portland, OR, have signed a partnership agreement to develop, manufacture, distribute, and support laser-based light scattering surface metrology products for the microelectronics industries. Veeco`s Surface Metrology Division will add the Schmitt TMS-200 and other laser-based microroughness measurement products to its Dektak family of surface profilers and atomic force microscopes. Under the agreement, the companies will co-develop other products that combine Schmitt`s laser-based measurement technology with Veeco`s fully automated Dektak platforms.

Robotic Vision Systems Inc. (RVSI), Hauppauge, NY, a supplier of 2D and 3D machine vision products, has acquired Systemation Engineered Products Inc. for RVSI stock valued at about $24 million. The acquisition was structured as a tax-free reorganization and will be accounted for as a pooling of interests. Systemation is a tape-and-reel and tube and tray-based component processing manufacturer. Systemation will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of RVSI and will retain its present management.

Boise-based SCP Global Technologies (formerly Santa Clara Plastics) is expanding and focusing resources on 300-mm wet cleaning technology. The company will more than double its total square footage, and more than quadruple cleanroom space to 18,600 ft2 by next year. The company is shifting from being a strictly North American firm to one with a global reach. SCP is focusing efforts on robotics, process tanks, software, and other areas.

Rudolph Technologies Inc., Flanders, NJ, has been chosen to supply 300-mm thin-film metrology systems to I300I, the international consortium of chipmakers developing 300-mm technology. The company`s Caliber 300 system will enable the organization to develop and qualify its 300-mm programs. Caliber 300 is designed to provide high repeatability and inherently accurate measurements on thick and thin films for current- and future-generation semiconductor devices. The system is among the first process control tools available for semiconductor equipment manufacturers and 300-mm pilot lines to qualify new processes and applications.

Olin Microelectronic Materials, Norwalk, CT, has been awarded a contract to provide chemical management services to Motorola`s BP3 fab in Mesa, AZ. Olin`s onsite team will oversee chemical distribution at the fab, including managing chemical inventory, purchasing chemicals, handling just-in-time delivery, guaranteeing the purity of chemicals, and collecting and preparing for disposal of all waste. In addition, Olin plans to more than double the size of its ultra high-purity chemicals plant and distribution center in Zwijndrecht, Belgium. The facility will produce parts-per-trillion grade process and diffusion chemicals.

Eaton Semiconductor Equipment Operations (SEO), Beverly, MA, has opened a 165,000 ft2 manufacturing facility in Austin, TX. The plant will produce Eaton`s medium current implanters, such as the new NV-8250. The facility features state-of-the-art cleanroom manufacturing space and expanded demonstration and applications lab facilities.

A consortium of companies has been formed to accelerate commercialization and to expand applications for Tyecin Systems` new TEOS software. The companies include Level One Communications, Harris Semiconductor, Dallas Semiconductor, Hewlett-Packard, and United Microelectronics Corp. TEOS (Tyecin Enterprise Optimization Software), based on Harris` IMPREeSS 2.0 enterprise planning system, will provide supply chain optimization from wafer fabrication through final test for total order management. Beta release of the software is operational and further implementations at member companies are expected be occur through 1Q97.

ISHM, the Microelectronics Society, Reston, VA, and the International Electronics Packaging Society have merged to form the International Microelectronics and Packaging Society (IMAPS). This new society will represent all areas of packaging from chip to the ultimate system. The organization will advance and expand the use of packaging through education, dissemination of information, and promotion of technologies. Contact: 1850 Centennial Park Dr., Suite 105, Reston, VA 20191-1517; ph 800/535-4746 or 703/758-1060, fax 703/758-1066, e-mail [email protected].

DuPont Photomasks Inc. (DPI), Motorola, Advanced Micro Devices, and Micron Technology have formed a four-year technology venture to develop advanced mask technology and provide pilot line fabrication of leading-edge reticles. Known as the DPI Reticle Technology Center, the limited liability company will build, equip, and operate a $40 million facility next to DuPont`s Round Rock, TX, mask shop. The facility will house 5500 ft2 of cleanroom space in a 17,000 ft2 building. Both an ALTA 3000 laser-based mask exposure tool and a MEBES 4500 electron-beam tool will be installed, along with equipment capable of handling phase shift masks and aggressive optical proximity correction designs. Operations are slated to begin in 2Q97.