Asia/Pacific

12/01/1996

Asia/Pacific

Chartered Semiconductor, the Singapore-based foundry, is now offering a 0.35-?m, four-layer-metal process to its customers. The process, currently running test wafers at Chartered`s Fab 2, includes chemical mechanical planarization and salicide technology; process qualification is running in parallel with customer product qualification.

South Korean chipmaker Hyundai, continuing its efforts to gain market share in DRAMs, will spend a billion UK pounds ($1.56 billion) to build a large DRAM fab in Scotland, with the prospect of adding a second phase later. The Hyundai Electronics Europe facility is planned for Halbeath, near Edinburgh, with construction on the first phase beginning in March 1997. Production of 64-Mbit devices is slated to begin by the end of 1998, with an extension to 256-Mbit parts following some time thereafter. About 1000 people will be employed at the fab, which will process 30,000, 200-mm wafers/month. The second phase is expected to cost about 1.4 billion pounds ($2.2 billion), and employ an additional 2000 people. Hyundai received government incentives for the project.

Air Products and Chemicals Inc. Allentown, PA, and its Taiwanese joint venture partner, San Fu Chemical Co. Ltd., have entered into an agreement with National Chiao Tung University and the National Nano Device Laboratory (NDL) to develop applications for gases used in deep submicron semiconductor devices fabrication. Under this agreement, Air Products and San Fu will provide ultrahigh purity gases and gas systems know-how to support two R&D projects: one aimed at reducing titanium-disilicide/polysilicon interface point defect and low-field breakdown by forming a TiN layer using a novel NF3 annealing step; the other focused on growing the low-dielectric, fluorine-doped silicon oxide followed by nitridation to reduce moisture sensitivity.