Tag Archives: Advanced Packaging

September 4, 2012 — Wafer probe card maker FormFactor, Livermore, CA, has agreed to acquire fellow probe card supplier MicroProbe, San Jose, CA, for $100M in cash and $16.8M in stock. The deal, subject to customary conditions, is expected to close by the end of this year.

MicroProbe generated $87.3M in revenue for its fiscal 2011 (ended Dec. 31), with 46% Y/Y growth and a non-GAAP EBITDA profit margin of 20%.

The combined entity will, according to the companies, be the industry-leading supplier of advanced system-on-chip (SOC) probe cards, with technology leadership in both memory and SOC probe card markets. The entity also will see "improved and immediately accretive financial performance" by the beginning of 2013, they claim.

FormFactor was unseated as the longtime top nonmemory probe card supplier in VLSI Research rankings earlier this year; it now ranks second with $162M in 2011 sales, with Microprobe listed fourth. Combined they would rival Japan’s Micronics ($242M) which assumed the top spot. VLSI projects probe card sales will be flat in 2012 but overall growing steadily over the next five years, reaching $1.5B by 2016.

"This merger is a transformational event for FormFactor," stated FormFactor CEO Tom St. Dennis. "The combined company will have the technology and resources to address semiconductor test requirements across the entire advanced probe card space."

"This merger enables our world-class teams to accelerate innovation in wafer test across our customer base and provides compelling opportunities for our combined employees," explained Mike Slessor, CEO of MicroProbe, who will become SVP and executive officer of the combined companies.

"Together, we are in position to focus on delivering leading wafer probe solutions to meet the needs and roadmaps of logic and memory semiconductor device manufacturers," added FormFactor chairman Carl Everett.

August 27, 2012 – Microsemi has a new die packaging technology with a 75% smaller footprint vs. current implantable radio modules, for implantable medical devices such as pacemakers and cardiac defibrillators.

The company says its new die packaging technology has passed an internal qualification regime typical for active implantable medical devices consisting of thermal and mechanical stressing to MIL-STD-883 test standards, such as pacemakers and cardiac defibrillators. It can also be used in wearable devices such as hearing aids and intelligent patches, as well as nerve stimulators and drug delivery products.

The new internal die packaging technology continues a drive to develop miniaturized wireless medical products — it can be paired with Microsemi‘s ultralow-power ZL70102 radio to enable wireless healthcare monitoring, noted Martin McHugh, business and technology development manager of advanced packaging for Microsemi. Smaller and lighter-weight wireless medical devices will enable less invasive medical procedures and lower healthcare costs; for patients it means faster recovery times, greater mobility, and improved comfort.

"Moving forward, we plan to apply our size-reduction techniques and radio technologies to other markets such as smart sensing and applications where size and weight are critical success factors," McHugh added.

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August 24, 2012 — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted a rule mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to require companies to publicly disclose their use of conflict minerals that originated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) or an adjoining country.

The regulatory reform law directed the Commission to issue rules requiring certain companies to disclose their use of conflict minerals that include tantalum (Ta), tin (Sn), gold (Au), or tungsten (W) if those minerals are

August 24, 2012 — iNEMI is starting a new convergence project on semiconductor packaging equipment requirements, and is seeking input from the industry.

Semiconductor packaging, equipment and manufacturing complexity have risen dramatically in the past decade. IC makers have increased their specific equipment requirements, but have not developed a consistent set of industry-wide requirements for precompetitive needs. The resultant

August 21, 2012 – BUSINESS WIRE — Tessera Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSRA) received an initial payment of approximately $20 million from semiconductor packaging company Amkor Technology Inc. to Tessera, Inc., related to the interim award the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) issued on July 6, 2012, in favor of Tessera, Inc. in its dispute with Amkor.

"As previously announced, we intend to seek an amount in excess of $125 million in connection with the ICC’s interim award," stated Richard Chernicoff, president of Tessera Intellectual Property Corp., adding that his company will

August 17, 2012 — Deca Technologies, wafer-level packaging (WLP) services to the semiconductor industry, added Iain Meikle its executive management team, as VP of operations and managing director in the Philippines.

Also read: Flooding in the Philippines threatens microelectronics facilities

Meikle joins Deca from Carsem, a semiconductor packaging and test services provider, where he was VP of manufacturing for Malaysia and China. He has almost three decades experience in the semiconductor industry, including time with leadframe maker Dynacraft Industries; GEC Plessy Semiconductors, Seagate

August 16, 2012 — Wedge and wire bonder company Hesse & Knipps Inc., the Americas subsidiary of Hesse & Knipps Semiconductor Equipment GmbH, will demo a new 3mil wire bonding capability on its BJ935 automatic heavy wire bonder for back-end semiconductor packaging at the 45th International Symposium on Microelectronics (IMAPS).

Packaging professionals can watch the wire bonding tool in action at IMAPS booth 210, September 9-13 in San Diego, CA.

Hesse & Knipps enhanced the capabilities of its BJ935 heavy wire bonder to process gold, aluminum and copper semiconductor die bonding wire with diameters from 3 to 20mil (75 to 500