Tag Archives: letter-wafer-business

SEMATECH, the global consortium of chipmakers, announced today that Kurita Water Industries Limited has partnered with SEMATECH to develop innovative technologies for low defectivity ultrapure water (UPW) applications used in semiconductor manufacturing.

“SEMATECH, along with suppliers, is working to improve preparation and cleaning techniques by both optimizing existing technologies, testing novel methods and developing new characterization technologies that will address current and projected challenges in semiconductor and wafer manufacturing processes,” said Kevin Cummings, SEMATECH’s Director of Lithography. “The collaborative effort between SEMATECH and Kurita illustrates the demand for next-generation ultrapure water systems in the semiconductor industry.”

As a SEMATECH member, Kurita will collaborate with metrology, process and manufacturing experts at SEMATECH to identify and develop UPW defect removal techniques that will improve capabilities for key process applications in semiconductor manufacturing.

“Ultrapure water plays a critical role in manufacturing today’s extremely compact semiconductor chips and, as such, SEMATECH continues to expand our expertise and capabilities in liquid-phase defectivity, including ultrapure water, chemicals and resists,” said Edward Barth, SEMATECH’s Director of Strategic Growth Initiatives. “SEMATECH will leverage Kurita’s unique ultrapure water technology to investigate methods for improving lifecycle costs and increasing efficiency of critical manufacturing process applications and equipment components.”

According to the recently published TechSci Research report, “United States Photomask Market Forecast & Opportunities, 2019“, the photomask market in the United States is forecast to reach $474.58 billion by 2019. The Western region dominates the photomask market in the US, in terms of revenue share, due to the presence of a large number of semiconductor and FPD manufacturing facilities in the region.

Besides widespread usage in the semiconductor industry, the FPD application segment accounted for the largest revenue share in the US photomask market in 2013, where Hoya Corporation emerged as leading player in the country, in terms of photomask shipments for FPD application. While photomasks are widely used in the manufacture of TFT-LCD display panels, growth in LED and Laser panel display markets is expected to benefit the overall demand for photomasks in the FPD industry in the US, over the next five years.

Photomasks are key tools used in the manufacture of semiconductors, Flat Panel Displays (FPD), optical devices and other products. The photomask market is largely dependent on growth in the overall semiconductor industry. During the last three years, the United States photomask market witnessed negative growth in terms of unit shipment, due to decline in the country’s semiconductor industry. The industry exhibited a negative growth of 3.6 percent during 2011-12, predominantly due to steep decline in the desktop PC and components markets. However, with anticipated recovery in the desktop PC market over the next five years, the US semiconductor industry is forecast to register moderate growth, thus positively influencing the photomask market.

“Photomasks with soda lime and quartz base glass material are two widely available types, where the former variety accounts for majority revenue share, in both value and volume terms. Soda lime base glass material photomasks are easily affected by temperature disparity, resulting in higher overlay error when loading multiple layers. However, soda lime base glass material photomask segment is expected to witness steady growth over the next five years due to relatively low pricing of this material. On the contrary, quartz base glass material photomasks are popular due to low impurity levels, which offer high optical and thermal characteristics. As a result, quartz base glass material photomask segment is expected to gain traction in the United States photomask market, despite being costlier than soda lime base glass material photomasks,” said Mr. Karan Chechi, Research Director with TechSci Research, a research based global management consulting firm.

“United States Photomask Market Forecast & Opportunities, 2019” has evaluated the future growth potential of the photomask market in the US and provides statistics and information on market structure, market size & share, market trends, etc. The report includes the United States photomask market projections and demand forecasting. The report is intended to provide cutting-edge market intelligence and help decision makers to take sound investment evaluation. Besides, the report also identifies and analyzes the emerging trends along with essential drivers, challenges and opportunities available in the United States photomask market.

Silicon Motion Technology Corporation today announced Mr. Han-Ping D. Shieh has been elected to our Board of Directors, effective September 24, 2014. Mr. Shieh will replace Mr. Kenneth Kuan-Min Lin, who had chosen not to stand for reelection to the Board of Directors in order to focus more on his venture capital and other activities.

“We would like to thank Kenneth for his generous contributions to Silicon Motion as a member of our Board of Directors and he will be greatly missed. We would like to extend our best wishes to his future endeavors,” said Wallace Kou, the Company’s President and CEO. “Separately, it is with great pleasure that we welcome Han-Ping to our Board. He is a highly respected technologist who will increase our Board’s depth in areas relating to technology and engineering leadership, crucial factors in our long-term success.”

Mr. Shieh is currently a Professor at National Chiao Tung University’s Display Institute and Department of Photronics and a Vice Chancellor at the University System of Taiwan, the union of National Chiao Tung University, National Central University, National Tsing Hua University and National Yang-Ming University, four leading Taiwan research universities. Mr. Shieh was a Changjiang Scholar at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 2010, Dean at National Chiao Tung University’s College of Electrical & Computer Engineering from 2006 to 2010, and was a Research Staff Member at IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center from 1988 to 1992. He is currently on the Board of Directors at Sercomm, Advanced Analog Technology, and Tianma Microelectronics and is a Fellow of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Optical Society of America, and Society for Information Display. Mr. Shieh received his PhD in Electrical & Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University.

Silicon Motion is a fabless semiconductor company that designs, develops and markets high performance, low-power semiconductor solutions to OEMs and other customers in the mobile storage and mobile communications markets.

By Dr. Chris Moore & Winthrop Baylies, BayTech-Resor LLC

When you say the word sapphire most people think of a brilliant blue gemstone. The members that have formed the Tablet Working Group think of sapphire as a key enabler of future growth for their respective businesses. This article discusses the rationale for forming SEMI’s Tablet Working Group and the action plan moving forward.

At SEMICON West 2014 a presentation [1] to the HBLED technical committee summarized the information available on the expected impact of sapphire on both the Tablet and Smartphone market. It was decided to form a small working group of material suppliers and other interested parties to investigate this area. The mandate of the Tablet Working Group is to determine the needs for standards as they would apply to the eclectic group of manufacturers and service companies that form SEMI. During this discussion it was decided that the group should include not only the use of sapphire in these devices but glass as well. This article will focus on why sapphire and why this effort is starting now.

To put this in perspective the Tablet Working Group is interested in the rectangular pieces of sapphire or glass used as either the cover material (camera lens cover/TP cover) or basic screen of touch devices for tablets and smartphones. Figure 1 shows multiple sapphire cover components for mobile device from Chitwing – Silian optoelectronics. Figure 1 shows sapphire components without ink and coating and sapphire components with ink and AR/AF coating.

Figure 1: A sapphire cover/screen for a smart phone and camera lens cover (courtesy of Mike Feng (mingming.feng@silianopto.com) Chitwing - Silian) This figure shows sapphire components without ink and coating and sapphire components with ink and AR/AF coating.

Figure 1: A sapphire cover/screen for a smart phone and camera lens cover (courtesy of Mike Feng ([email protected]) Chitwing – Silian) This figure shows sapphire components without ink and coating and sapphire components with ink and AR/AF coating.group_photo_2

The Tablet Working Group’s interest encompasses the whole supply chain from the initial starting materials though the growth of boules (which may be rectangular) or sheets, shaping of the boule/sheet, slicing, dimensioning and polishing of the surfaces, applying the necessary anti-reflection (AR) or oleo phobic  (Anti-fingerprint , AF) coating which creates the screen or cover glass. Figure 2 contains a more detailed illustration of this supply chain.

Figure 2: A basic illustration of the tablet/smart phone sapphire supply chain.

Figure 2: A basic illustration of the tablet/smart phone sapphire supply chain.

The reasons for looking at this area now are clear. As you may (may not) know there has been considerable interest and a number of articles [2,3] published on the large sapphire growth facility purported to be related to Apple in Mesa Arizona. Depending on the analyst it is believed that the original facility (there is talk of an expansion) contains 2500 furnaces. These boules are shipped overseas to be sliced, dimensioned and polished. The analysts expect that this material will be used in the next generation of iPhone. This is definitely a large investment in the future and represents a significant jump in the predicted use of sapphire material over the next few years.

Given the cost of production (which is expected to be higher than for the equivalent glass unit [4]) the question becomes: why use sapphire in a mainline consumer product? The first answer is hardness and mechanical strength. Sapphire has been used for many years in higher-end watch products because it resists scratching and is extremely durable. Videos on the net show sheets of sapphire being rubbed by concrete blocks [5] with no effect. As part of the mechanical strength it is also predicted that sapphire units will be thinner than their glass equivalents enabling even thinner device designs.

The second reason is more obscure and yet in many ways more important than the first and is a result of sapphire’s optical and electrical properties. It has been reported that touch / camera lens cover screens and sensors made from sapphire are more durable and reliable in its function. Since all of the devices discussed here are by their nature touch screen-driven this becomes a significant factor in final device performance.

With this background we can start explaining why the interest by some SEMI members to examine this manufacturing area. SEMI itself is a collaborative of material suppliers, production equipment manufacturers, metrology system makers, automation suppliers, device producers and service support companies. Given the level of investment predicted for sapphire in the Tablet/Smart phone area one can see that all of these areas will be affected. At least one furnace manufacturer has pinned a large portion of their company’s future on the sapphire industry and it is expected that others will follow. Thus the equipment producers are already moving down this path with significant investment in both equipment and process development. As usual at this stage of development in a new market segment there are very few standards that exist for both the material and its testing. More important, since there is no standard guidance, the end user has less information on how to define sapphire product specification. This non-standard fabrication from material to final product would cost more than standard process.

The Apple business model for sapphire production is highly vertically oriented. However, it is expected that many of the other suppliers of Tablets and Smart phones will contract out the growth and manufacturing of their cover/screen needs resulting in a significant growth market. Although some analysts predict the eventual displacement of glass from this area in all but the lowest-end tablet and smart phone products, many still look at the economic factors which favor glass. However, it is clear that the economics of sapphire screens will be greatly affected by the scale of production now being envisioned.

Thus we have a potentially large sapphire market which is currently in its early growth stage. SEMI and its Standards groups have effectively participated many times in markets of this type including flat panel displays, photo-voltaic devices, and the emerging work of the HBLED committee.

One of the questions asked is why this work would be under the auspices of the HBLED Technical Committee. The original presentation [1] was discussed as part of the HBLED Substrate Taskforce which is the group responsible for generating the first standards [6] for the sapphire wafers used in the HBLED manufacturing process. Since the group has an interest in sapphire the initial thoughts were that this area could be looked at as developing standards for “substrates” which are now rectangular as opposed to round.

As the presentation was discussed in the technical committee meeting it was clear that the definition of the “substrate” was only part of the potential work to be done. Thus it was decided to form a working group to look at the potential for standards work in the Tablet/Smart phone area. It was also clear that SEMI expertise in materials, automation and metrology standards filled a niche not being addressed by the IEC standards group. At no point did any of the volunteers present want to take on work that was already being done or outside the normal area SEMI would cover. The discussion also highlighted work other than standards which may be of benefit for SEMI but this is beyond the scope of the working group.

The Tablet Working Group will hold its first phone conference in September. Current working group members include material suppliers like Silian ( a pioneer in sapphire) and Corning, metrology suppliers and other interested parties. The first face to face meeting will be at the fall Standards meeting in San Jose. If you have interest in joining the group please contact Michael Tran of SEMI staff or Chris Moore at [email protected]  or Win Baylies at  Win.Baylies @ BayTech-Resor.com.

[1] Tablet Substrates SEMI Standards Presentation https://sites.google.com/a/semi.org/hbled/hb-led-wafer-tf/july-10-2014

[2] Analyst article on Apple/Mesa AZ http://seekingalpha.com/article/2167493-gt-advanceds-sapphire-operations-in-arizona-are-likely-fully-ramped-and-ready-to-deliver-the-goods-to-apple?isDirectRoadblock=false&app=1&uprof=45

[3] Analyst article on Sapphire Composite Cover Screens for Mobile Devices and Point-of-Sale Scanners  http://seekingalpha.com/article/2235313-gt-advanced-technologies-next-frontier-sapphire-composite-cover-screens-for-mobile-devices-and-point-of-sale-scanners?app=1&uprof=45

[4] Analyst article on Glass Demand for Higher-Generation Glass Substrates will Drive Corning’s Display Volume – http://seekingalpha.com/article/2230553-ignore-the-sapphire-threat-corning-is-on-a-roll

[5] Internet video Aero Gear’s Flight Glass SX Sapphire Crystal vs a Concrete …

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh17UvUQxwM

[6] SEMI HB-LED standards (www.SEMI.org/standards)

HB-1-0814 Specification for Sapphire Wafers for Use for Manufacturing High-Brightness Light Emitting Diode Devices

HB-2-0613 Specification for 150 mm Open Plastic and Metal Wafer Cassettes Intended for Use for Manufacturing HB-LED Devices

HB-3 -1113 Mechanical Interface for 150 mm HB-LED Load Port

HB-4-0913 Specification of Communication Interfaces for High Brightness LED Manufacturing Equipment (HB-LED ECI)

 

Belgian nanoelectronics research centre imec and Kyocera Corporation announced today that Kyocera, the Japanese high-tech electronics company and manufacturer of photovoltaic (PV) cells, modules and systems, has joined imec’s industrial affiliation program (IIAP) to advance next-generation crystalline silicon solar cells.

This multi-partner R&D program aims at increasing the efficiency of solar cells and modules while at the same time lowering the cost for solar energy. This is done through the development of innovative industry-relevant solutions on different crystalline silicon solar cell technology platforms with improved efficiencies ranging from 22.5% to 25%.

The IIAP creates a research ecosystem for accelerating the development of intellectual property, sharing R&D resources and risks, providing companies a cost-effective way to extend their research and product development capabilities. Researchers from energy companies, solar cell manufacturers and material and equipment suppliers collaborate with imec’s solar experts on developing advanced processes and testing them on imec’s semi-industrial pre-pilot line. Covering the complete solar cell value chain, imec’s industrial affiliation program provides essential information to help its partners make the right R&D choices to innovate their solar cell technologies, supporting them to maintain a competitive positioning in the solar cell market.

“We are excited that Kyocera, a powerhouse in the solar manufacturing business, has joined our research program. The commitment from Kyocera is a confirmation of the significance of our solar cell research for the global PV market,” said Luc Van den hove, president and CEO at imec. “It is my strongest conviction that only by investing in R&D and innovation, companies can prepare for the future and stay ahead of the competition in a challenging environment such as the PV market.”

“By collaborating with imec and its partners, we hope to further advance silicon photovoltaic cell technologies in order to make solar energy more accessible and usable for society,” stated Nobuo Kitamura, senior executive officer and general manager of the Corporate Solar Energy Group at Kyocera Corporation. “As a pioneer of solar energy with over four decades of experience, Kyocera remains committed to promoting the further use of solar power generation and we believe that the IIAP provides us with these opportunities by bringing together the expertise from leaders in the industry.”

Bipartisan passage this week by the U.S. House of Representatives of a bill designed to stimulate development and commercialization of new technologies and promote growth of high-value jobs is being praised by leaders of SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics. The bill, the Revitalizing American Manufacturing and Innovation (RAMI) Act, now moves to the full Senate for a vote. The bill’s authors have said they are optimistic that it will win passage there as well this year, and will be signed into law by the President.

RAMI (S. 1468 and H.R. 2996) was introduced by Senators Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Representatives Tom Reed (R-New York) and Joe Kennedy (D-Massachusetts). The bill would authorize the Secretary of Commerce to establish manufacturing institutes through a Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NMI).

The institutes – known as Innovation Manufacturing Institutes (IMIs) — would function in public-private partnerships including the federal government, local governments, universities, research institutes, and industry to accelerate manufacturing innovation in technologies with commercial applications. The partnerships would facilitate bridging the gap between basic research performed at U.S. universities and research laboratories, and product development by U.S. manufacturers.

“We are pleased with the bipartisan leadership evidenced with the passage of the RAMI bill, “ said James McNally, chair of the SPIE Engineering, Science, and Technology Policy committee. “This action supports and aligns with the continued commitment of SPIE, driven by its membership, to advocate for photonics R&D and job creation.”

The bill’s acknowledgement that optics and photonics are pervasive in our everyday lives is important as well, McNally said. “Light-based innovations and products can provide significant improved quality of life throughout the world in health care, energy efficiency, lighting, and clean water. Enactment of this bill would position U.S. manufacturing consortiums at the forefront of providing these innovative products to the world, while creating high-quality domestic manufacturing jobs.”

Inclusion of optics and photonics sections in the bill has been advocated by SPIE and other organizations working through the National Photonics Initiative (NPI), a collaborative alliance seeking to raise awareness of photonics and drive U.S. funding and investment in key photonics-driven fields. SPIE, in its role as a Founding Sponsor of the NPI, continues to work toward its long-held mission of advocating for the photonics industry, noted SPIE CEO Eugene Arthurs.

“Our constituents see first-hand how important their work is in enabling inventions that meet society’s many needs, while creating new jobs and generating new revenue,” Arthurs said. “Their research, reported through SPIE events and publications, shows the technology’s vast potential. The products and systems we see at SPIE’s exhibitions are evidence that the technology is already a sizable piece of the economy.”

Photonics scientists, researchers, engineers, and technicians are responsible for developing light-based technologies for earlier and better diagnosis, treatment, or monitoring of conditions such as cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, and epilepsy, Arthurs said. “Their work in integrated photonics will enable the next generation of computing and further evolution of the internet — which exists and functions because of photonics. They are developing sustainable energy sources, more efficient lighting, and other technologies to meet the world’s growing energy needs. In short, photonics is improving our lives and strengthening the economy in the process.”

EMCORE Corporation, a provider of compound semiconductor-based components and subsystems for the fiber optic and space solar power industries, today announced a transition plan of its Chief Executive Officer position in connection with the announced sale of its Space Photovoltaics business.

Dr. Hong Q. Hou, EMCORE’s President and Chief Executive Officer, will be stepping down from his position. Dr. Hou will continue to serve in his current role until his successor is appointed. Dr. Hou, who has served as EMCORE’s President and Chief Executive Officer since March 2008 and as member of the Company’s Board of Directors since 2006, will work with the Board to ensure a smooth transition to EMCORE’s next Chief Executive Officer for the remaining fiber optics business. Dr. Hou will resign from the Board of Directors once a successor has been appointed.

Dr. Hou joined EMCORE as Director of Technology in 1998. He co-founded EMCORE’s Photovoltaics division and led the commercialization of high-efficiency multi-junction solar cell technology for space power applications, which was based on his research work and patents licensed from Sandia National Laboratories. According to EMCORE’s official press release, Dr. Hou was instrumental in taking concepts from the drawing board to the production of world-class, space-qualified products. From 2000 to 2006, Dr. Hou served as Vice President and General Manager of several fiber optics divisions at EMCORE and he led many initiatives to grow EMCORE’s fiber optics businesses. He was instrumental in sourcing, negotiating, acquiring, and integrating several companies into EMCORE’s business portfolio. Dr. Hou was promoted to the role of Chief Operating Officer in December 2006 and held that position until his promotion to President and Chief Executive Officer in March 2008.

Dr. Gerald Fine, EMCORE’s co-Chairman commented, “Hong has provided tremendous technical and business leadership to EMCORE over the past 16 years and has helped navigate the Company through a very dynamic and complex marketplace. I applaud his contributions to the space photovoltaics and fiber optics industries. He has helped to both lead the company in the development of new technologies and business opportunities, as well as manage people through extreme challenges. I would like to personally thank Hong for his leadership, dedication and commitment to EMCORE, and wish Hong tremendous luck in his future endeavors.”

SEMI today reported the worldwide PV manufacturing equipment billings and bookings for the second quarter of 2014. Worldwide billings increased to $319 million in Q2 2014, an increase of 33 percent from the prior quarter but 11 percent below the same quarter a year ago. Worldwide bookings for the first quarter declined to $234 million, 21 percent below Q1 2014 but 25 percent higher than Q2 2013.  At 0.73, the book-to-bill ratio is below parity.

Figure I -- Source: SEMI and VDMA, September 2014

Figure I — Source: SEMI and VDMA, September 2014

On a regional basis, equipment bookings in Q2 2014 dramatically increased in the Americas and decreased in Europe and Asia.  However, Asia still represented almost 80 percent of total PV equipment bookings.

The worldwide PV equipment billings and bookings data is gathered jointly by SEMI and the German Engineering Federation (VDMA) from about 40 global equipment companies that provide data on a quarterly basis.

About SEMI

SEMI is the global industry association serving the nano- and microelectronics manufacturing supply chains.

Triad Semiconductor, Inc. today announced that David B. Bell former President & CEO of Intersil and former President of Linear Technology Corporation was appointed to the company’s board of directors.

“David has extraordinary technology and business expertise, and we are delighted that he is joining Triad’s board of directors,” said Lynn Hayden, Triad CEO and chairman.

Mr. Bell brings over thirty five years of analog and mixed signal semiconductor experience to Triad’s board. From 2008 to 2012, he served as President and CEO of Intersil Corporation leading the transformation of Intersil from a PC-centric business into a system-level analog & mixed signal company focused on key growth markets. From 2003 to 2007, Mr. Bell served as President of Linear Technology Corporation where he oversaw their revenue growth from $607M to $1,093M.

“Triad’s technology enables rapid creation of custom analog and mixed-signal ICs without the compromises of prior configurable analog solutions.” Bell said. “I’m excited to join Triad’s board and help them exploit the broad market potential for this new technology.”

At SEMICON Europa, attendees and exhibitors will delve into the technologies that shape the future of the microtech, nanotech, medtech and cleantech industries. Representing the entire supply chain from materials to electronic systems and services, 35 major European start-ups will participate in the Innovation Village and present their new technologies at SEMICON Europa.  The largest and most important semiconductor event in Europe, SEMICON Europa  will be held 7-9 October in the Grenoble location for the first time. The new three-day Innovation Village program will be the stage for emerging innovators, industry leaders, strategic investors, and venture capitalists to discuss the needs of the industry’s innovation engine. Attendees will gain insights on technology, capital, partnership, and collaboration strategies necessary for mutual success.

Innovation Village consists of a start-up exhibition (7-9 October), Silicon Innovation Forum (7 October) and Innovation Conference (8 October). As part of the Silicon Innovation Forum, all selected start-ups will have the opportunity to “pitch” to investors and SEMICON Europa visitors. The pitch session will be followed by a start-up panel discussion  “Fundraising for the Future Champions of European Electronics,” led by Jean-Pascal Bost of SATT-GIFT with panelists: Jacques Husser (Sigfox), Eric Baissus (Kalray), Serguei Okhonin (ActLight) and Mike Thompson (Hotblock Onboard).

The Innovation Conference, sponsored by Fidal Innovation, will bring together notable names in European innovation to discuss current practices and relevant funding issues facing semiconductor and high-tech start-ups today. Keynote speakers will include Nicolas Leterrier (Schneider Electric) on Innovation Practices and Dan Armbrust (Silicon Catalyst) on Lean Innovation. Christine Vaca (Gate1) will act as the conference chair.

“For the inaugural SEMICON Europa in Grenoble, our team was intent on developing a program that would highlight the strength of the local and the European ecosystems in innovation and new technology,” explains Anne-Marie Dutron, director of the SEMI Grenoble office. “At Innovation Village, visitors will discover the creativity of 35 European start-up companies, presenting their products, partnership and investment opportunities.”

Participating start-ups were chosen by a selection committee which included ten of the most recognizable venture firms in the industry: Applied Ventures LLC, Robert Bosch Venture GmbH, TEL Venture,3M Ventures, CEA Investissement, Samsung Ventures, Air Liquid Electronics, ASTER Capital), VTT Ventures, and  Capital-E.

Start-ups include ActLight (Switzerland), BlinkSight (France), BluWireless Technology (UK), Calao-Systems (France) and Silicon Line (Germany). For more information about Innovation Village, participating start-ups or about the Innovation Conference, please visit the SEMICON Europa website: www.semiconeuropa.org/Segments/InnovationVillage

All events in Innovation Village, including the three-day start-up exhibition, Silicon Innovation Forum and Innovation Conference will be available at no charge for all SEMICON Europa guests and visitors. The event will be co-hosted by SEMI Grenoble and Gate1. The mission of GATE1 is to support the creation of new technology-driven businesses by capitalizing on the proximity of numerous university laboratories and research centers. GATE1 offers programs for technology maturation, business incubation and business acceleration.