04/01/2003  Minneapolis, MN - FSI International Inc. and Solid State Technology, a PennWell publication, have announced the inauguration of the Process Outlook Forum Seminar Series.

04/01/2003  April 1, 2003 - Tokyo, Japan, and Sunnyvale, CA - Fujitsu Ltd. is set to merge its flash memory operations with those of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) through a joint venture, reported the Nihon Keizai Shimbun.

04/01/2003  Motorola Inc. has demonstrated what it calls the first memory chip based on silicon nanocrystals, according to a news release.

04/01/2003 

04/01/2003  STMicroelectronics, the world's third-largest semiconductor company, is ramping up its involvement in medical MEMS. Although ST has long produced MEMS for autos and industry, this new product is its first foray into bioMEMS. The company is punctuating this new chapter by investing in state-of-the-art research facilities to build up a bioMEMS product line.

03/31/2003  Experts generally agree that if another way isn't found to make computer chips, the industry will soon show Moore's Law the door. While clever engineers have found ways to push the limits of what is physically possible with optical lithography, companies like Mapper Lithography in the Netherlands are experimenting with new methods.

03/28/2003  MARCH 28--RED WING, Minn.--MoZAK Systems, Inc. has completed the shipment of six Pulsed-Air Wire Strippers (PAWS-750B) to two different semiconductor fabrication sites in Southeast Asia.

03/28/2003  There are very few companies that possess the money and technical talent it takes to seriously pursue molecular electronics. That's where Hewlett-Packard Co. comes in. HP’s nanocomputing efforts will have major effects on smaller startups that are working on their own molecular electronics applications.

03/27/2003  Applied Materials Inc. announced it will lay off 14 percent of its work force this year as part of an overall cost-cutting plan.

03/26/2003  March 26, 2003 - Brookfield, CT - Photronics Inc. will cut its work force by between 10 and 12% and cease manufacturing operations in Phoenix, in an effort to return to profitability by July.

Will future processing be impeded by power supply realities?

03/26/2003  By Roman Bida, Consultant

Power converters and power supply systems in semiconductor manufacturing equipment affect their performance and product quality. New developments such as the 300mm wafer transition and ultra shallow junctions stress power source technologies. Common practices may give rise to complexity-related problems MORE

03/26/2003  A new device, structured like a square Oreo cookie, balances the power of laser beams shining through an optical fiber. But the partnership between the companies that produced it has a "you've got chocolate in my peanut butter" quality to it. Their collaboration suggests that to survive, small tech startups must be willing to work with each other in new ways.

03/19/2003  March 19, 2003 - San Jose, CA - The North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $782 million in orders in February 2003 and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.99, according to Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI).

03/19/2003  A state-of-the-art lab for commercial development of MEMS and microsystems opened Tuesday at Detroit's Wayne State University with the help of Troy, Mich.-based Delphi Corp., which will use the space to adapt its sensor technologies to biomedicine and other markets. The facility is part of the Smart Sensors and Integrated Microsystems program at the University's College of Engineering.

03/17/2003  March 17, 2003 - Santa Clara, CA - Applied Materials Inc., the world's largest supplier of wafer fabrication solutions to the semiconductor industry, has unveiled a plan to align the company's cost structure with current business conditions. The realignment plan has two major elements: restructuring actions -- including consolidation of facilities and a reduction in work force of some 2,000 employees; and second, focused program management to provide additional cost savings.

03/17/2003  March 17, 2003 - Minneapolis, MN - FSI International Inc., a manufacturer of capital equipment for the microelectronics industry, said that it intends to discontinue its microlithography business operations and focus exclusively on its surface conditioning business.

03/17/2003  MARCH 17--NASHUA, N.H.--CleanRooms Group of PennWell Corp., publishers of CleanRooms magazine, and the Bethesda, Md.-based PDA, an International Association for Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, have signed a multi-year contract to co-locate their industry events.

03/14/2003  Therma-Wave Inc., a Fremont, Calif., manufacturer of process control metrology systems, appointed Papken Der Torossian as chairman, according to a company news release.

03/12/2003  Veeco Instruments Inc., a Woodbury, N.Y., provider of metrology tools and process equipment, said it has opened an office in Shanghai, China, to support recent orders in the country.

03/12/2003  FEI Co., a Hillsboro, Ore., developer of metrology products, announced release of a new scanning electron microscope.