Semiconductors

SEMICONDUCTORS ARTICLES



RoodMicrotec-adds-almost-EUR2m-capital

12/29/2010 

RoodMicrotec N.V. has successfully secured mezzanine capital of € 1.994 million without repayment obligation, providing a long-term strengthening of the company’s equity position.

Graphene-at-IEDM-Michael-Fury-reviews-nanotech-papers

12/28/2010 

IEDM 2010, which took place early in December, included papers on all aspects of advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Techcet's Michael A. Fury reviews several papers he saw at IEDM covering Nobel-Prize-garnering nanomaterial graphene.

The ConFab welcomes new Advisory Board members, SEMI as sponsor

12/28/2010 

The ConFab, an invitation-only global conference and networking event for semiconductor industry executives, announces the appointment of five new advisory board members for 2011. The ConFab also welcomes the industry association SEMI, which has agreed for the first time to sponsor The ConFab in 2011.

IBM Racetrack Memory discovery moves data on nanowires

12/27/2010 

IBM (NYSE: IBM) Research is the first to measure the movement and processing of digital data as a magnetic pattern on nanowires 1,000 times finer than a human hair. Racetrack Memory uses the spin of electrons to move data at hundreds of miles per hour to atomically precise positions along the nanowire "racetrack."

IBM Racetrack Memory discovery moves data on nanowires

12/27/2010 

IBM (NYSE: IBM) Research is the first to measure the movement and processing of digital data as a magnetic pattern on nanowires 1,000 times finer than a human hair. Racetrack Memory uses the spin of electrons to move data at hundreds of miles per hour to atomically precise positions along the nanowire "racetrack."

S-P-Equity-semiconductor-predictions-2011

12/27/2010 

S&P Equity Research semiconductor and semiconductor equipment analysts Clyde Montevirgen and Angelo Zino have issued their 2011 forecasts for the industry, covering sales/revenues, capacity utilization, back-end equipment, solar crossover, and more.

IEDM Reflections, Day 3: TSMC's 2Xnm FinFET, and a PV+CMOS "Terminator"

12/22/2010 

Techcet's Michael A. Fury looks at papers from the third day of this year's IEDM conference, including a new 2Xnm FinFET process from TSMC, phase-change memory, a PV cell-CMOS device, eDRAM, and more work on graphene.

13-fabless-IC-suppliers-in-2010-1b-sales-club-says-IC-Insights

12/22/2010 

There are 13 fabless IC companies expected to register more than $1.0 billion in sales in 2010, up from 10 companies in 2009 and 8 in 2008. These 13 suppliers are forecast to have a combined $41.4 billion in sales and represent about 70% of the $59.6 billion worth of total fabless company IC sales expected in 2010.

Why 3D-IC conversion resembles the bipolar-CMOS shift

12/22/2010 

3D IC technology will require significant changes across the design, tool, and manufacturing spectrum -- that sounds a lot like how the industry transitioned from bipolar to CMOS, writes Dr. Phil Garrou, reporting from themes at an IEEE 3D event in Munich.

Scaling-FinFets-Increase-fin-height-reduce-geometry-apply-strain

12/21/2010 

podcast interviewTo prepare for the time when the semiconductor industry might choose FinFETs at advanced nodes, SEMATECH researchers investigated possible scalability paths. Options include increasing the fin height, reducing geometries (to get better control in the channel and probably higher drive currents), applying strain, and applying high-mobility materials, says Raj Jammy, SEMATECH.

DRAM-pricing-collapse-update-from-iSuppli

12/21/2010 

DRAM pricing. Source: iSuppliPC makers are jamming cheap DRAM into systems, as pricing reaches critical levels. Watch for DRAM makers at 6x-nm and 5x-nm nodes to become inefficient, warns iSuppli. DRAM prices are expected to remain critical until at least H2 2011.

SemiSouth-sends-SiC-die-to-Micross-for-hermetic-packaging-aimed-at-mil-aero-drilling-apps

12/21/2010 

Micross Components, Inc. and SemiSouth Laboratories, Inc. announced a collaborative effort to expand SemiSouth's line of Silicon Carbide (SiC) Power JFETs and Schottky Diodes. SemiSouth will provide select JFET and diode die to Micross for packaging and test in metal hermetic packages

RRAM-research-Imec-lays-groundwork-for-memory-tech-ramp

12/20/2010 

Imec researchers demonstrated the competition effect in the switching of several conductive filaments in resistive RAM (RRAM) using a small-size FUSI gate NMOS transistor. The work was laid out in IEDM 2010 paper "Generic learning of TDDB applied to RRAM for improved understanding of conduction and switching mechanism through multiple filaments." Malgorzata Jurczak and Thomas Hoffmann of Imec discuss the developments.

Semiconductor-CMP-pad-maker-NexPlanar-opening-OR-site

12/20/2010 

NexPlanar will open a new manufacturing facility in Hillsboro, Oregon, by the end of 2010 for increased production of chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) pads used in semiconductor manufacturing. The company is moving into an 18,000 square foot facility from a smaller location in the same town.

CHAD-front-end wafer-handling-software-meets-SEMI-E95

12/17/2010 

CHAD Industries has launched WaferWare, a new software front end for its WaferMate family of automated wafer handling systems. The new WaferWare release was driven to provide a flexible software platform for automated wafer handling and to meet the SEMI E95-1101 specification.

IEDM Reflections, Day 2: Graphene, RRAM, MEMS, and Jedi circuit designs

12/17/2010 

Techcet's Michael A. Fury continues with observations from the second day of IEDM 2010 presentations, examining papers on several graphene-based devices, a RRAM device stack on flexible substrates, using MEMS for RF channel switching, and Jedi tricks for post-FinFET circuit design.

IEDM 2010: Inside Renesas' eDRAM structure

12/17/2010 

At IEDM 2010, Renesas chief engineer Yoshihiro Hayashi shares details about the company's new logic IC-compatible eDRAM targeting system LSIs 28nm and below, including development of a special porous film for the interconnect layer to suppress metal contamination.

Foundry-orders-Nanometrics-TSV-metrology-system

12/17/2010 

Nanometrics Incorporated (Nasdaq: NANO) announced that a leading semiconductor foundry has ordered a UniFire 7900 metrology system for advanced 3D wafer-scale packaging process control.

IEDM Reflections, Day 2: SRO for 11nm multigate CMOS, memory updates

12/16/2010 

Michael A. Fury continues with observations from IEDM 2010, looking at 2nd-day papers on a 90nm CMOS image sensor; an 11nm planar multi-gate CMOS design with self-assembled gates; SiC/GaN power electronics for auto systems; an update on future memory technologies; and a transparent photosensor array with triple oxide TFTs as both switches and sensor elements.

DCG-sends-wafer-test-systems-to-CIMPACA

12/16/2010 

The Centre Intégré de Microélectronique Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur (CIMPACA) selected DCG Systems products for its characterization and failure analysis platform: the ELITE lock-in thermography system and the Meridian WaferScan emission microscopy wafer prober with LVx option.




WEBCASTS



Environment, Safety & Health

Date and time TBD

The semiconductor industry is an acknowledged global leader in promoting environmental sustainability in the design, manufacture, and use of its products, as well as the health and safety of its operations and impacts on workers in semiconductor facilities (fabs). We will examine trends and concerns related to emissions, chemical use, energy consumption and worker safety and health.

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Wafer Processing

Date and time TBD

As the industry moves to 10nm and 7nm nodes, advances in wafer processing – etch, deposition, planarization, implant, cleaning, annealing, epitaxy among others – will be required. Manufacturers are looking for new solutions for sustained strain engineering, FinFETs, FDSOI and multi-gate technologies, 3D NAND, and high mobility transistors.

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