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Silvaco, Inc. (Silvaco) and TSI Semiconductors, LLC (TSI) today announced that they have extended their collaboration to accelerate the development and production launch of TSI’s 0.25um BCDMOS process technology.

TSI Semiconductors’ 0.25um BCD with deep trench isolation is a feature rich platform that enables high growth applications in lighting, automotive, power, automation, and consumer goods. The technology is a new offering at the companies’ automotive qualified factory in Roseville, CA where there have been continuous manufacturing operations for over 30 years.

TSI’s TSBCD25 process imposes stringent requirements on modeling efficiency and model accuracy. This requires a SPICE parameter extraction flow that is easy to set up and utilize with convenient data measurement on different instruments. Flexibility in optimization and acquisition routines as well as plotting of results are key requirements for improved modeling productivity. TSI reviewed several industry leading SPICE modeling tools and ultimately selected Silvaco’s Utmost IV as it delivered the required accuracy with the latest CMC standard HiSIM_HV2 model support. It also met the desired productivity and flexibility requirements with clear user examples for the different modeling tasks. Utmost IV covers a wide range of models from active devices such as BJT, MOSFET, high-voltage DMOS to passives, such as resistors, all with a single license.

With the adoption of Utmost IV, TSI is able to build upon its existing use of Silvaco’s TCAD tools for process development. Linking SPICE modeling to TCAD enables rapid optimization so that process changes can be reflected in circuit behavior all in a simulation environment without having to run wafers. This helps to deliver a robust process with high yields in the shortest time possible. Sundar Chetlur, TSI’s VP, Foundry Process Technology Development said, “We feel that Silvaco’s tools enable us to provide accurate SPICE models to our customers in a very efficient flow, particularly, for our high-voltage TSBCD25 technology.”

Silvaco has focused on the challenges of high-voltage device modeling for a long time and was one of the first companies to incorporate the HiSIM_HV2 model into a commercial modeling tool. Amit Nanda, Silvaco’s VP of Marketing and Product Management said, “It is a great honor to have a leader in high-voltage process technology validate our efforts to deliver best in class SPICE modeling tools. Silvaco has a strong customer base in the power semiconductor segment and we will continue to meet the challenging requirements of these high-voltage technologies.”

The two companies intend to extend this collaboration by offering customers, designing to TSI’s TSBCD25 process, access to affordable custom design tools, from Silvaco, spanning schematic, layout, simulation, and verification.

Yesterday, KLA-Tencor announced a plan to significantly accelerate its strategy to drive stockholder returns. KLA-Tencor’s Board of Directors authorized the financing of a leveraged recapitalization, which would feature a special cash dividend of $16.50 per share, representing approximately 23 percent of the company’s common stock price as of October 22, 2014, or approximately $2.75 billion.

In its official release, KLA-Tencor said its Board of Directors currently intends to declare and pay the special cash dividend before December 31, 2014. The special cash dividend would be in addition to the Company’s regular $0.50 per share quarterly cash dividend. The company’s regular $0.50 per share quarterly cash dividend is expected to be declared and paid following the company’s regularly scheduled Board of Directors meeting in November 2014.

In connection with the leveraged recapitalization, the Board of Directors has approved an increase to the company’s stock repurchase program for up to 3.6 million additional shares of the company’s common stock, which is valued at approximately $250 million based upon the closing price of the company’s common stock as of October 20, 2014. This is in addition to the $1 billion stock repurchase program previously announced in July 2014.

KLA-Tencor expects to complete these share repurchases within 12 to 18 months. The repurchases may occur from time to time, in the open market, with consideration given to the market price of the common stock, the company’s other investment opportunities, and general economic conditions.

Including the intended special cash dividend of $16.50 per share (or an aggregate value of approximately $2.75 billion), the $250 million increase to the stock repurchase program announced today, and the $1 billion stock repurchase program previously announced in July 2014, the total capital that would be directed to stockholders would be approximately $4 billion in aggregate.

The intended special cash dividend of $2.75 billion in the aggregate will be funded in part with a portion of the cash on the company’s balance sheet, and in part with incremental debt. To fund the debt financed portion of the special cash dividend, KLA-Tencor intends to add up to $2.5 billion of incremental debt, consisting of a combination of investment grade senior notes and a pre-payable term loan facility, subject to market conditions. The company also expects to enter into an unfunded revolving credit facility, subject to market conditions. The declaration and payment of the special cash dividend are conditioned on the company’s ability to obtain requisite debt financing on satisfactory terms and conditions. KLA-Tencor intends to manage its capital structure to preserve and maintain its investment grade rating.

What the analysts are saying

Getting a read on what this means for KLA-Tencor’s future is difficult, but Srini Sundararajan, Semiconductor, Semi-cap Equipment Analyst, Summit Research Partners, provided these thoughts.

“Most likely, an increased capital intensity projection due to FinFET and 3D NAND next year likely left the management to seize the opportunity for a one-time special mega-dividend shareholder return during 2014,” said Sundararajan. “KLAC could potentially be an acquisition target for LRCX or ASML given that they might need to ‘bulk-up’ post the potential consummation of an Applied Materials-Tokyo Electron merger.”

While the leveraged recapitalization plan benefits shareholders and upper management, it will definitely lead to higher interest expenses and during down-turns, Sundararajan said, there could be some pressure put on continued dividends and buybacks while paying down the debt.

“The use of debt to return money to shareholders will definitely leave some wondering whether the company thinks that: a) additional internal R&D is a worthy use of money, and, b) no external M&A targets are out there that are attractive,” Sundararajan concluded.

IMAPS Award Winners for 2014


October 24, 2014

By Dr. Phil Garrou, Contributing Editor

At the IMAPS (International Microelecronics & Packaging Society) meeting last week, several of their key annual awards were given out.

IMAPS 1Dr. Harry Charles of Johns Hopkins was given the IMAPS Lifetime Achievement Award for “for a lifetime of achievement and invaluable contributions to microelectronics technology; the microelectronics industrial development; and IMAPS.”

 

 

IMAPS 2Dr. Andy Mackie of Indium Corp. received the William Ashman Achievement Award “for his technical contributions in solder joint reliability and emerging microelectronics packaging and semiconductor technologies.”

 

 

 

IMAPS 3Dr. Jeff Gotro, retired VP of Technology at Ablestick and currently consultant at Innocentrix, received the John Wagoner technical achievement award for  “…his numerous technical contributions to Microelectronics and Electronics packaging.”

 

 

IMAPS also awarded the following individuals the level of Fellow of the Society: Ken Kuang – Torrey Hills Technologies; Dr. Robert Dean Jr – Auburn; Dr. Ivan Ndip – Fraunhoffr IZM and  Dr. Jeff Gotro – Innocentrix

Mentor Graphics Corp. today announced the appointment of A.J. Incorvaia to the role of vice president and general manager of the company’s Board Systems Division. The Mentor Graphics Board Systems Division offers a complete PCB flow, providing many of the world’s largest system design companies with a range of scalable solutions to reduce the time, cost and risk of electronic system design.

Incorvaia was recently vice president of the PCB and IC Packaging Group at Cadence Design Systems. Other responsibilities during his sixteen years at Cadence included vice president of Product Development, and engineering group director. Prior to Cadence, Incorvaia held software development and management positions at Viewlogic and Digital Equipment Corporation. He holds a B.S in Computer Science from Rochester Institute of Technology, and an M.S in Computer Science and Software Engineering from George Mason University.

“Mentor Graphics has a strong, proven track record of leadership in PCB systems design,” said A.J. Incorvaia. “I am excited to be joining an organization that is committed to its customers’ success and is forward-thinking in delivering world-class technologies to the electronics industry.”

“A.J. has a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the PCB/EDA industry, and a demonstrated focus on serving customers and improving software quality,” said Henry Potts, vice president and general manager of the company’s Systems Design group, which comprises several Mentor divisions.  “Mentor already has leading market share in PCB, and under A.J.’s direction we anticipate a strong momentum to further increase that leadership.”

North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.17 billion in orders worldwide in September 2014 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.94, according to the September EMDS Book-to-Bill Report published today by SEMI.   A book-to-bill of 0.94 means that $94 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in September 2014 was $1.17 billion. The bookings figure is 12.9 percent lower than the final August 2014 level of $1.35 billion, and is 18.1 percent higher than the September 2013 order level of $992.8 million.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in September 2014 was $1.25 billion. The billings figure is 3.3 percent lower than the final August 2014 level of $1.29 billion, and is 22.5 percent higher than the September 2013 billings level of $1.02 billion.

“Following 11 months of above parity book-to-bill ratios, the three-month average ratio declined in September,” said Denny McGuirk, president and CEO of SEMI.  “While order activity moderated, equipment spending this year is expected to be robust and remain on pace for double-digit year-over-year growth.”

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars.

 

Billings
(3-mo. avg)

Bookings
(3-mo. avg)

Book-to-Bill
April 2014

$1,403.2

$1,443.0

1.03
May 2014

$1,407.8

$1,407.0

1.00
June 2014

$1,327.5

$1,455.0

1.10
July 2014

$1,319.1

$1,417.1

1.07
August 2014 (final)

$1,293.4

$1,346.1

1.04
September 2014 (prelim)

$1,250.4

$1,172.8

0.94

Source: SEMI, October 2014

The semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing industry produces a range of input devices that are necessary in the production of electronics, including circuits and memory chips. In the past five years, the industry has contracted due to the continued offshoring trend that has pervaded much of Canada’s manufacturing sector. In addition, greater competition from US and East Asian manufacturers, which offer lower-priced products due to more competitive labour costs, have contributed to the industry’s decline.

“As such, although demand for downstream electronics is on the rise, the inputs are being manufactured elsewhere,” according to IBISWorld Industry Analyst Darryle Ulama.

As a result, in the past five years, industry revenue in Canada is expected to decline at an annualized 5.1 percent to $2.5 billion, including an 8.0 percent decline in 2014.

The broader electronics value chain is highly globalized, with product design, raw material procurement and manufacturing segmented across facilities in different regions.

“Moreover, consumer electronics have global demand, driven by falling prices and technology innovation,” says Ulama.

Industry performance is thus dependent on trade trends such as the competiveness of exports and the extent of import penetration. In the five years to 2014, industry exports are expected to decline at an annualized 6.6 percent to $1.4 billion, as US and East Asian competitors outperform domestic manufacturers. Meanwhile, the value of industry imports is projected to increase at an annualized 1.3%, with strong double-digit gains in 2013 and 2014, pointing to the flood of imports that have supplanted operators.

Similar trends are expected during the five years to 2019. Industry manufacturers, which are typically small- to mid-sized enterprises, will find it difficult to match the research and development (R&D) spending of multinational competitors. As a result, industry exit and acquisition activity are anticipated during the next five years, further contributing to the industry’s decline.

Intermolecular, Inc. announced this week that Dr. Bruce McWilliams has been appointed president and chief executive officer. David Lazovsky has resigned as president and chief executive officer and from the Board of Directors to pursue other interests.

“We are grateful to Dave for his many years of service in leading Intermolecular from its inception,” said Bruce McWilliams. “I have been on the board of Intermolecular since its earliest stages, and am excited about the opportunity to build on the foundation that Dave created. I know the Intermolecular team and technologies well, and am looking forward to working with our customers to realize the value of our unique R&D platform and capabilities.”

Dr. McWilliams has served on the Intermolecular board since 2005 and as the chairman of the Board of Directors since June 2014. He most recently served as the chief executive officer of SuVolta from June 2009, and was the chief executive officer of Tessera from 1999 to 2008. He has also worked in the fields of silicon chip-based display, multi-chip module manufacturing and solar heating technology. Dr. McWilliams holds B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in physics from Carnegie Mellon University.

Qualcomm to acquire CSR


October 16, 2014

Qualcomm today announced that it has reached agreement with CSR regarding the terms of a recommended cash acquisition of CSR will be acquired by Qualcomm Global Trading Pte. Ltd.

The acquisition complements Qualcomm’s current offerings by adding products, channels, and customers in the important growth categories of Internet of Everything (IoE) and automotive infotainment, accelerating Qualcomm’s presence and path to leadership. This opportunity is aligned with Qualcomm’s established strategic priorities in these rapidly growing business areas.

At £9.00 per share, the acquisition of the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of CSR is valued at approximately £1.6 billion ($2.5 billion based upon an exchange rate of USD:GBP 1.6057). This cash offer has been unanimously recommended by the CSR board of directors.

“The addition of CSR’s technology leadership in Bluetooth, Bluetooth Smart1 and audio processing will strengthen Qualcomm’s position in providing critical solutions that drive the rapid growth of the Internet of Everything, including business areas such as portable audio, automotive and wearable devices,” said Steve Mollenkopf, chief executive officer of Qualcomm Incorporated. “Combining CSR’s highly advanced offering of connectivity technologies with a strong track record of success in these areas will unlock new opportunities for growth. We look forward to working with the innovative CSR team globally and further strengthening our technology presence in Cambridge and the UK.”

IRLYNX and CEA-Leti today announced they have launched a technology-development partnership for a new CMOS-based infrared technology that will allow a new type of smart and connected detectors in buildings and cities.

The strategic partnership with Leti’s Silicon Development Division and the Optics and Photonics Division will develop a solid technology platform that allows IRLYNX to provide an unrivalled solution in the field of human-activity detection and characterization. These products will be able to count people, distinguish humans, get positions and determine posture. This new, low-cost technology will help IRLYNX bring to the market new sensors targeting various applications in energy saving, safety and security and human/object interactions.

The collaboration is based on the development of specific microelectronic steps above CMOS IC and on the hosting of IRLYNX R&D’s activities inside Leti’s clean-room facilities.

Partially funded through the Easytech program of the IRT Nanoelec research institute, the partnership blends Leti’s expertise in advanced materials and photonics technologies developments. IRLYNX is focusing for its part on a specific IC design, a customized optic integration and the “on-die” data processing of such human-sensing-activity module.

“Through this strong partnership with CEA-Leti, we continue to deploy our strategic plan as expected. The capacities and how-know of Leti in advanced-technologies development are really an advantage for IRLYNX. With this agreement and Leti’s support, we are shortening our time to market,” said Sébastien Fabre, IRLYNX CEO.

“The collaboration with IRLYNX highlights Leti’s mission to support startup initiatives and emphasizes our expertise in IR imaging devices and technologies,” said Bruno Mourey, vice president of Leti’s Optics and Photonics Division. “IRLYNX is a very good match for Leti, because the IRLYNX team has an innovative IC design, clear optic-integration goals and a persuasive business plan.”

With its recent first round of funding, which raised 1M€, IRLYNX will be able to deliver first products in the third quarter of 2015.

Texas Instruments today announced it has shipped more than 22 billion units of copper wire bonding technology from its internal assembly sites and is now in production for major high reliability applications including automotive and industrial.  The majority of TI’s existing analog and CMOS silicon technology nodes have been qualified with copper, and all new TI technologies and packages are being developed with copper wire bond.  Along with its quality, reliability and cost benefits, copper wire offers equal or better manufacturability compared to gold.  It also delivers 40 percent higher electrical conductivity to give customers a boost in overall product performance with a number of TI’s analog and embedded processing parts.

“TI has pioneered development of copper wire bonding for high volume production across a broad portfolio of products, factories and technologies,” said Jan Vardaman, president and founder of TechSearch International, Inc.  “TI was one of the first manufacturers to recognize the many advantages copper wire technology offers a customer.  For example, it provides more thermal stability than gold and has superior mechanical properties to increase bond strength.”

TI is currently shipping about two billion units of copper wire bond technology each quarter.  This includes production for key automotive segments such as safety (e.g., anti-lock brake systems, power steering, stability control), infotainment, body and comfort, and powertrain.  Enabling copper wire bond technology for automotive applications requires significant development to automotive standards and strict manufacturing discipline. TI’s extensive manufacturability and reliability testing meets automotive industry qualification requirements and includes thorough process corner development, production quality and reliability monitoring, and manufacturing controls.

TI began shipping copper wire in its products in 2008.  Today, all of TI’s assembly and test (A/T) sites are running copper wire bonding on all TI package types, including BGA, QFN, QFP, TSSOP, SOIC, PDIP and others.  Copper is at 71 percent of TI’s total wire usage and TI is in production with:

  • Minimum 30/60 microns staggered bond pad pitch
  • Up to 1000 wires in BGA packages
  • Multi-chip stacked die with die to die wire bonding
  • Minimum 0.8mil copper wire diameter

“Having multiple wire bond capabilities that support a wide range of silicon technologies and product applications is a great benefit to our customers,” said Devan Iyer, director of Semiconductor Packaging in TI’s Technology & Manufacturing Group.  “TI’s flexible manufacturing strategy also improves customer delivery and performance for products using copper wire bond.  We have a clear capacity advantage, both internally and with qualified subcontractors, that enable us to meet all levels of customer demand.”