Semiconductors

SEMICONDUCTORS ARTICLES



SEMICON West: Bulls and bears divided over 2007

07/31/2006  When leading analysts faced off to debate the prospects for industry growth at the annual "Bulls and Bears" session at SEMICON West, all agreed that 2006 was shaping up to be a very good year, but were widely split in their forecasts for 2007.

SanDisk widens memory reach with Msystems deal

07/31/2006  July 31, 2006 - In the latest big move to consolidate power in the memory sector, flash memory giant SanDisk Corp., Milpitas, CA, has agreed to acquire Msystems Ltd., Kfar Saba, Israel, in an all-stock deal valued at up to $1.55 billion, including stock options and convertible debt.

SMIC swings to profit, predicts flat 3Q

07/31/2006  July 31, 2006 - After posting a net profit of $2.2 million in 2Q06 on 2.9% higher sales, Chinese flagship foundry Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) says it's expecting flat sales through next quarter, but is "cautiously optimistic" about the rest of the year.

Qualcomm farms out cell phone, power ICs to SMIC

07/31/2006  July 31, 2006 - Wireless developer Qualcomm Inc. has signed a deal with Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) to produce chips for the firm's 3G wireless and power management ICs, using a specialized BiCMOS process technology at its 200mm fab in Tianjin, China.

Intel/Micron Offshoot Develops 50-nm NAND Flash

07/28/2006  IM Flash Technologies, a company formed by, and exclusively manufacturing for, Intel Corporation and Micron Technology, is sampling NAND flash memory built on 50 nm process technology. The 4-GB device is sampling, and the companies plan to roll-out a range of densities on the 50-nm node in 2007. IM Flash operates high-density NAND technology from Micron with multi-level cell technology from Intel.

VLSI: June temps rise for equipment, ICs; July lull on deck

07/28/2006  Demand for semiconductor equipment and ICs turned out a little bit better than expected in June, with a return to a brief seasonal lull expected over the next several weeks, according to data from VLSI Research Inc.

Two-year Metrology Research Program Initiated

07/28/2006  ICOS Vision Systems Corporation NV and IMEC, an independent research center for nanoelectronics and nanotechnology, will undertake a two-year joint exploration and development program (JEDP) into 3-D packaging inspection and metrology. The inspection solution supplier will provide technology and equipment for the research, which will be performed at IMEC's laboratories.

Ultra Clean to integrate, test Matson strip, RTP tools

07/28/2006  July 28, 2006 - Ultra Clean Holdings Inc., Menlo Park, CA, and Mattson Technology Inc., Fremont, CA, have signed a partnership deal whereby Ultra Clean will integrate and test critical subsystems on Mattson's advanced strip and rapid thermal processing (RTP) tools.

Flash memory inventor, Toshiba settle landmark litigation

07/27/2006  July 27, 2006 - Toshiba Corp. has agreed to settle a dispute with an ex-engineer who was instrumental in the creation of flash memory, two years after he sued them for reimbursement for his work while at the company.

ICOS, IMEC to develop 3D packaging metrology

07/27/2006  July 27, 2006 - ICOS Vision Systems Corp. NV and European R&D center IMEC have agreed to collaborate on development of metrology methods targeting 3D packaging processes for ICs, including wafer-level packaging, flip-chip, systems-in-package, and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS).

ASML, Gigaphoton ink litho support pact

07/26/2006  July 26, 2006 - Laser light source manufacturer Gigaphoton Inc. said it will now support US customers of Dutch litho tool provider ASML, including laser installation and sustaining maintenance, and said the deal could expand to other parts of the world "in due course."

Mosaid reloads DRAM patent suit vs. chipmakers

07/26/2006  July 26, 2006 - Mosaid Technologies Inc. said it has initiated new litigation in Texas against memory chipmakers Micron Technology Inc., Powerchip Semiconductor Corp., and ProMOS Technologies, alleging infringement of nine US patents concerning DRAM technologies. Meanwhile, Micron has filed for declaratory relief in a separate court hearing.

Photronics opens China maskmaking shop, hires Asia CTO

07/26/2006  July 26, 2006 - Photronics Inc., Brookfield, CT, has officially opened its photomask manufacturing site in Shanghai, China, about three years after announcing plans for its formation. A production ramp is planned by 4Q06 at the facility in the Zhangjiang Semiconductor Industrial Park, which the company noted is the first merchant photomask fab to be brought online in the Shanghai region in more than a decade.

Entegris, Miraial settle wafer carrier patent spat

07/26/2006  July 26, 2006 - Entegris Inc. and Japanese firm Miraial Co. Ltd. (formerly Kakizaki Manufacturing Co. Ltd.) have settled litigation over disputed patents concerning 300mm semiconductor wafer handling technology, with terms undisclosed.

Intel, Micron push to 50nm NAND

07/26/2006  July 26, 2006 - Intel Corp. and Micron Technology Inc., through their joint venture IM Flash, say they have started sampling 4Gbit NAND flash memory devices using 50nm process technologies, and plan to ramp to mass production across a range of memory densities within the next year.

Midyear forecasts: Chipmakers 'robbing Peter to pay Paul'

07/25/2006  A roundup of midyear forecast updates for semiconductor sales, equipment sales, and capital expenditures indicates general agreement that 2006 will shape up to be a boon year overall, particularly in the first half of the year, and strongest on the equipment side. But growth this year will come at a cost, as the same analysts generally agree that 2007 looks to be downright gloomy.

PART II: Litho, metrology, mask/OPC tools make a splash at SEMICON West

07/25/2006  Continuing his report on this year's SEMICON West, senior editor M. David Levenson looks at the latest tools for immersion lithography and e-beam, new metrology from startup firms, and innovations from companies involving mask substrate tuning and automating OPC.

Samsung readies 65nm low-power process

07/25/2006  July 25, 2006 - Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. said it has qualified its 65nm low-power process technology, to expand its contract foundry offerings from its S1 300mm logic fab line in Giheung, Korea.

Freescale touts "breakthrough" packaging replacement for BGA, flip-chip

07/25/2006  July 25, 2006 - Freescale Semiconductor says it has developed a new "redistributed chip packaging" technology that could replace ball grid array (BGA) and flip-chip for packaging and assembly, and claims to have already fabricated a device targeting use in mobile phones.

Veeco announces new PVD order, record automated AFM orders

07/25/2006  Veeco Instruments Inc. announced that it received an order during the second quarter of 2006 for its new NEXUS Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) Multi-Target Sensor tool from a leading manufacturer of thin film magnetic heads. The system is used to deposit high-quality, extremely uniform, thin film multi-layer stacks and will be used by the customer to manufacture high areal density Tunneling Magneto-Resistive heads.




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Environment, Safety & Health

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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

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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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