08/15/2007  August 15, 2007 - TSMC says it has started making the graphics-memory subsystem for Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming console, using a 90nm embedded DRAM process with 80mn density design and 500MHz speeds.

08/15/2007  August 15, 2007 - Worldwide sales of semiconductor manufacturing equipment rose 3% in 2Q07 vs. the prior quarter, but that small growth was entirely on the backs of heavy investments in Taiwan and China mainly for memory operations, according to the latest data from SEMI and the Semiconductor Equipment Association of Japan (SEAJ).

08/15/2007  SEMI reported global semiconductor manufacturing equipment billings at $11.06B in Q'02 2007, and bookings at $10.22B. Strong memory investments in the first half of 2007 led to an increase in billings, according to Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO, SEMI, adding that bookings declined, but remained at "sustainable levels."

08/14/2007  Data from the London Mercantile Exchange (LME) confirms that — at mid-year 2007 — copper, lead, and tin raw metal prices remain above 2006 levels. Leadframe materials, including copper and nickel, are hitting record prices, asserts The Nikkei Business Daily, which suggests that component manufacturers are resistant to absorbing the higher raw metals costs.

08/14/2007  August 14, 2007 - Scotland's Semefab Ltd. says it has acquired the building next to its Fab 1 and Fab 2 operations, as part of an expansion phase to create 3000 sq. m of new cleanroom floorspace for MEMS frontend processing

08/14/2007  August 14, 2007 - RF Micro Devices Inc. has agreed to acquire RF components supplier Sirenza Microdevices in a cash-and-stock deal worth about $900 million.

08/14/2007  Results shared at the recent West Coast Junction Technology Group meeting indicated a spike rapid thermal anneal followed by a millisecond laser anneal improves polysilicon gate depletion to the extent that it opens up the possibility of being able to delay the introduction of complex metal gates until the 32nm node for most applications. Also notable was the finding that a medium-power laser anneal gave much better overall results for NMOS and PMOS devices than a high-power laser anneal.

08/13/2007  August 13, 2007 - The European Commission has given its approval for the proposed new JV entity combining flash memory assets of STMicroelectronics and Intel's NOR assets and resources, saying the transaction "would not significantly impede effective competition."

08/13/2007  By Allen Park, KLA-Tencor Corp., Milpitas, CA, United States

EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW A powerful new method can identify systematic defects within a large defect sample, prior to SEM review. By integrating design data with defect data, this method enables accurate binning of randomly distributed structural systematic defects. Instead of relying on inefficient random review sampling to identify defects of interest (DOI), this technique applies a pattern search engine...

08/13/2007  By John Borland, contributing editor, Solid State Technology

The VLSI Symposium meeting this year (June 12–14, Kyoto, Japan) revealed there will be not one, but many different solutions for the production implementation of hafnium-based oxides at the 45nm node and beyond, with Hf-based dielectric k values varying from a "medium"-k (8–12) up to a true high k of 22–24. The gate electrode for some companies will remain poly ...

08/13/2007  August 13, 2007 - Hynix Semiconductor Inc. will use Innovative Silicon Inc.'s (ISi) ZRAM high-density memory IP for its ZRAM chips, the first company to license the technology for DRAMs (AMD is using it for microprocessors).

08/13/2007  Verdant Electronics named more than 15 members from packaging, interconnect, PCB, and related industries to its board of advisors, including Happy Holden, Werner Engelmaier, and others. These contributors helped frame the Occam package-first assembly method Verdant introduced, and will bring the process from concept to development, said Joe Fjelstad, president, Verdant.

08/13/2007  August 13, 2007 - After suffering through a "painful" 1H07, there's renewed optimism that the 2H07 will be better, as firmed-up pricing, demand drivers, and a challenging tech migration balance customer pressure for cheaper high-density devices, according to a report from IC Insights.

08/10/2007  BPM Microsystems shipped the first units of its next-generation NAND and NOR flash device programmer, Flashstream. Flashstream is the company's first dedicated hardware design for flash memories.

08/10/2007  August 10, 2007 - Taiwanese chip firms' semiconductor capital spending is expected to surge 50% this year to $13 billion -- vs. just a 5% industrywide capital spending growth, and on the backs of not only its foundries but also memory expansion, according to Strategic Marketing Associates.

08/10/2007  August 10, 2007 - Elpida Memory Inc. aims to ramp to mass production of 65nm DRAMs during the current fiscal year at its Hiroshima plant, and will "quickly move to introduce the technology" to its Rexchip JV with Taiwan's Powerchip, according to the Nikkei daily.

08/10/2007  InteliCoat Technologies sold its electronic and engineered films (EEF) business unit to Exopack Holding, Inc., for an undisclosed amount. The division gives Exopack a European facility and new markets.

08/10/2007  PI's (Physik Instrumente) new high-resolution, 3-axis nanopositioning / scanning stage features parallel-kinematics design for fast operation. It is designed for nanomanipulation, imaging, and materials research.

08/09/2007  August 9, 2007 - ProMOS Technologies and Toppan Printing have agreed to collaborate on manufacturing CMOS image sensors (CIS) using Toppan's proprietary on-chip color filters and microlens technologies. Manufacturing will be done at ProMOS' 300mm line, Fab 2, in Taiwan's Hsin-chu Science Park -- which will soon become depreciated, which will keep manufacturing costs low for the CIS work, the firms noted.

08/09/2007  August 9, 2007 - Researchers at the U. of Texas/Austin say they've developed a nanoparticle technique that provides more insight into the formation of "deep traps," which are desired for memory devices built with plastic semiconductors but undesirable for things like solar cells and LEDs.