11/22/2006  Innos, the UK-based nanotech research and development company, said it is providing integration engineering support and prototyping services for the UK Framework 6 Network of Excellence SiNANO project.

11/22/2006  SUSS MicroTec., the Munich, Germany-based supplier of precision manufacturing and test equipment for the semiconductor and emerging markets, announced that the University of Alberta's NanoFab has selected its new ELAN CB6L wafer bonding equipment for its research and production activities.

11/22/2006  SEMI reported that worldwide semiconductor manufacturing equipment billings reached $10.97 billion in the third quarter of 2006. The billings figure is 14 percent higher than the second quarter of 2006 and 38 percent above the same quarter a year ago. The data is gathered in cooperation with the Semiconductor Equipment Association of Japan (SEAJ) from more than 150 global equipment companies that provide data on a monthly basis.

11/21/2006  Fresh off a tour of several Chinese chipmakers, senior analyst Christian Dieseldorff of Strategic Marketing Associates tells WaferNEWS who impressed him the most, who has the most ambitious expansion plans (and who's in trouble), and where most of China's fabs will look to fund their expansion efforts.

11/21/2006  Business will keep slowing down for the equipment segment's 800-lb. gorilla and the overall industry, but it's more of a seasonal trend than a worrisome cyclical downswing, and should only last another quarter or so before picking up steam again, according to Applied Materials execs, discussing their company's fourth-quarter and year-end 2006 performance and 2007 projections.

11/21/2006  November 21, 2006 - Days after a business unit reorg and executive shuffle, Nova Measuring Instruments Ltd. has announced layoffs of about 8% of its workforce in all parts of the organization, but mainly in R&D and operations and including management positions. The company will take a $300K charge in 4Q06 to cover termination expenses and other costs, but foresees saving $2 million in 2007.

11/21/2006  November 21, 2006 - FormFactor Inc. has filed new patent litigation against Micronics Japan Co. Ltd. (MJC) alleging infringement upon four US patents covering the company's wafer probe card technology.

11/20/2006  November 20, 2006 - Flush with new business from solar-cell customers in Asia, MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. has anxiously approached two Taiwanese manufacturers to help grow and slice the silicon ingots, according to the Taiwan Economic News.

11/20/2006  November 20, 2006 - Furthering its newfound interests in the high-growth solar market, Applied Materials Inc. says it has invested $3.0 million in Solaicx, a privately held manufacturer of single-crystal silicon wafers for the solar photovoltaic (PV) industry. The firm plans to use the investment to open a second manufacturing site in the US by next year.

11/20/2006  November 20, 2006 - Taiwanese foundry United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) says it has produced functional 45nm SRAM chips at its Fab 12A, using immersion lithography for 12 critical layers, as well as ultrashallow junctions, mobility enhancement techniques, and a k=2.5 ultralow-k dieletric.

11/17/2006  November 17, 2006 - Global demand for semiconductor manufacturing equipment fell as seasonally expected in October, but tool sales are still enjoying a brisk pace from a year ago. Meanwhile, chip orders continue to ramp up for holiday demand.

11/17/2006  November 17, 2006 - AMD and Fujitsu, former JV owners of flash memory device maker Spansion Inc. and now two of the company's larger shareholders, are offering a total of 35 million shares of Spansion stock, about 27% of Spansion's total outstanding shares, for a total of $48.75 million.

11/17/2006  November 17, 2006 - In the latest salvo between the industry's juggernaut foundry and an upstart rival, Chinese flagship foundry Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) has filed suit in the Beijing High Court against Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), alleging unfair competitive practices, "breach of good faith," and "commercial defamation," according to an Associated Press report.

11/17/2006  November 17, 2006 - Sarnoff Europe says it has licensed its "TakeCharge" portfolio of on-chip electrostatic discharge protection technology to Fujitsu, for protecting the chipmaker's 65nm CMOS IC products.

11/17/2006  November 17, 2006 - As reported weeks ago, NXP Semiconductors (the former Philips chipmaking business) and partner TSMC have raised their ownership stakes in Systems on Silicon Manufacturing Co. Pte. Ltd. (SSMC), their joint venture chipmaking facility in Singapore.

11/17/2006  Heidelberg Instruments GmbH, a Heidelberg, Germany-based supplier of direct write laser lithography systems, announced the order for an advanced MW800fs system by Shenzhen New Way Electronic Co. Ltd. of Shenzhen, China.

11/16/2006  November 16, 2006 - The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) has slightly tweaked its outlook for chip sales for the next several years, seeing 9.4-10.6% growth through 2008, as the industry becomes even more tightly tied to consumer electronics demand.

11/16/2006  Helen Armer, Sokudo Co. Ltd., Kyoto, Japan

Dainippon Screen Mfg. Co. Ltd. and Applied Materials Inc. formed the Sokudo semiconductor coat/develop track joint venture in July 2006 to develop new track technologies that will enable users to meet the challenges of next-generation lithography processing. Sokudo's goal is to offer users competitive and technically differentiated track products that can help keep the semiconductor industry on its roadmap to smaller linewidths.

11/15/2006  November 15, 2006 - Surprising growth in sales and shipments from the top DRAM memory during 3Q, including a strong push from second-tier Taiwan chipmakers, has brightened the segment's outlook for the entire year, according to new data from iSuppli Corp.

11/15/2006  November 15, 2006 - After months of pressure from domestic chipmakers, the Taiwan government says that by year's end it will lower the restrictions for transferring process technologies to mainland China to 0.18-micron, from the current 0.25-micron level.