01/20/2006  January 20, 2006 - Axcelis Technologies Inc., Beverly, MA, has unveiled the newest addition to its Optima line of ion implanters, targeting both traditional high-dose implants as well as applications for sub-65nm device manufacturing.

01/19/2006  January 19, 2006 - STMicroelectronics said it has completed the transition of its 128Mbit, 256Mbit, and 512Mbit NAND flash devices to 90nm process technology, which it claims will lower the memory chips' cost and power consumption.

01/19/2006  January 19, 2006 - Spansion Inc. and Elpida Memory Inc. are collaborating to combine Spansion's MirrorBit NOR and ORNAND flash memory and Elpida's DRAM in a single memory subsystem for use in consumer wireless applications.

01/19/2006  January 19, 2006 - In a move to reduce expenses and tighten focus on its technical programs, Sematech is eliminating about 15% of its cost structure, restructuring various support and administrative functions and reshaping its interconnect program.

01/19/2006  January 19, 2006 - Macronix International Co. Ltd. has agreed to sell its idle 300mm facility Fab 3, along with cleanroom and adjunctive equipment, to PowerChip Semiconductor Corp., a deal reportedly worth $166 million.

01/19/2006  January 18, 2006 -- /MARKET WIRE/ -- AUSTIN, TX and PHOENIX, AZ -- The International SEMATECH Manufacturing Initiative (ISMI) and Semico Research Corporation this month will offer linked public conferences that will assess manufacturing challenges and evolving business strategies in the semiconductor industry.

01/19/2006 

01/18/2006  January 18, 2006 - Kopin Corp., Taunton, MA, has ramped to volume production of its GaAsInN heterojunction bipolar transistor (GAIN-HBT) wafers, targeted for use replacing InGaP HBT wafers for cell phone power amplifiers.

01/17/2006  January 17, 2006 - Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. (TSMC) has entered full production of 80nm "half-node" process technology, a lithographic shrink of its 90nm process technology.

01/17/2006  January 17, 2006 -- /BUSINESS WIRE/ -- SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Metron Technology has launched its new eMetron.com online ordering capability designed to optimize the efficiency of purchasing cleanroom consumables for customers in the U.S.

01/16/2006  January 16, 2006 - IMEC's Europractice IC service has added a 90nm multiproject wafer run using UMC's 90nm logic and mixed/RF process technology.

01/12/2006  January 12, 2006 - Fujitsu Ltd. said it will spend 120-130 billion yen (roughly US $1 billion) to build a new semiconductor plant at its 300mm facilities in Mie Prefecture, to produce 90nm and 65nm CMOS logic.

01/12/2006 

01/12/2006 

01/10/2006  By Bob Haavind, Group Editorial Director

While exotic properties of materials in the nanozone (1-100nm) promise a host of new devices and applications, success in the marketplace will depend on making tough choices and focusing on developing products offering sustainable profits.

01/10/2006  By Debra Vogler, Senior Editor

Singapore's Economic Development Board (EDB) has a lot to tout these days. The island city-state already boasts 14 silicon wafer fabs putting out ~400K wafers/month (200mm-equivalent wafers), along with 40 IC design companies and 20 assembly and test companies. Singapore's electronics manufacturing output in 2004 was about $43.5 billion, 39% of which was in the semiconductor area.

01/10/2006  January 10, 2006 - Photronics Inc., Brookfield, CT, plans to build a new photomask fabrication facility in South Korea, to support R&D and volume production of photomask technologies for semiconductors using 65nm- and below process technologies.

01/10/2006  January 10, 2006 - A group of 14 chipmakers, universities, and research institutes aims to find ways to control leakage currents in CMOS designs below 65nm, cited as a "showstopper" for future generations of nanoelectronic circuits.

01/10/2006  January 10, 2006 - Aubrey "Bill" Tobey, president of ACT International, has been presented with the seventh annual Bob Graham award for "outstanding contributions in semiconductor equipment and materials marketing" by SEMI.

01/10/2006  January 10, 2006 - Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) and Infineon Technologies AG have agreed to extend their DRAM contract manufacturing partnership beyond 300mm/90nm to include flexibility for 70nm technology transfers in the future.