02/14/2012 

Lita Shon-Roy and Michael Fury, PhD, Techcet will present "CMP Market Outlook & New Technology - Dynamic Slurry Metrology," a free webinar at 2 times on February 22.

02/08/2012 

The 2011 International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS) has been publicly released. Several areas of advancement are highlighted in the 2011 ITRS: DRAM and Flash memory, and MEMS.

02/08/2012 

JP Sercel Associates, Inc. (JPSA) expanded its Ultrafast processing capabilities, using Pico-second lasers with innovative laser beam delivery techniques.

02/07/2012 

Novellus debuted the VECTOR Strata dielectric deposition tool for high-volume VIM Flash manufacturing. VECTOR Strata aims for ultra-smooth films with exceptional defect performance, enabling in-situ deposition of the alternating silicon-based layers used in the formation of the VIM structure.

02/07/2012 

The electronics industry will edge out coal-fired boilers as the biggest purchaser of ultrapure water systems and consumables in 2012, according to the McIlvaine report: Ultrapure Water World Markets.

02/07/2012 

Worldwide silicon wafer revenues improved 2% YOY, shows the SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group. Worldwide silicon wafer area shipments, however, decreased 3%, indicating a loss of momentum in H2 2011, said Kazuyo Heinink, SEMI SMG.

02/07/2012 

Veeco Instruments (Nasdaq:VECO) reported 3 wins for its TurboDisc K465i GaN MOCVD tool : the same systems will be used for high-volume LED fab, GaN-on-Si research, and Si-based LED development.

02/03/2012 

Tokyo Electron Ltd. (TEL) restructured its organization, with a new "Organic EL Division" established under GM Takeshi Okubo, as well as other new and consolidating subsidiaries in the semiconductor and liquid crystal production segments.

02/01/2012 

Soitec (Euronext Paris) completed its acquisition of all of the outstanding shares of Altatech Semiconductor S.A. The final purchase price was EUR15 million.

02/01/2012 

Gore introduced a 20nm-rated PTFE filter, available in a HDPE cartridge. The filter is optimized for bulk processing high-purity chemicals used in semiconductor and flat panel display manufacturing.

01/31/2012 

Cambrios Technologies Corporation appointed John LeMoncheck as president and CEO, and announced a $5 million Series D-3 financing round from Samsung Venture Investment Corporation.

01/31/2012 

The global semiconductor market will see a slow 2012, reports IHS, with economic uncertainty and semiconductor inventory not moving enough to stimulate new production. Expect negative growth in Q1 2012, a nascent rebound in Q2, and strong growth in Q3 2012, IHS reports.

01/27/2012 

Texas Instruments (TI, NASDAQ:TXN) will close 2 older semiconductor manufacturing facilities in Hiji, Japan and Houston, TX over the course of the next 18 months. Production from these analog chip sites will be moved to more advanced TI facilities.

01/27/2012 

President Barack Obama visited the Intel Ocotillo campus in Chandler, AZ. The President spoke about Intel's technological innovation, and manufacturing jobs in America.

01/26/2012 

ABB Robotics introduced an ISO 5 (Class 100) Cleanroom version of the IRB 120, its smallest multipurpose 6-axis robot. Any source materials in the IRB 120 prone to particle generation were modified to eliminate contamination potential in the manufacturing area.

01/26/2012 

Test Advantage Capital Group, a business of BSE Group, surpassed $150M in its portfolio of semiconductor manufacturing equipment under management. Boston Semi Equipment's fab equipment leasing business also received a $100M annual commitment from its financial backer, Wafra Capital Partners.

01/23/2012 

North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.16 billion in orders in December 2011, $1.32 billion in billings, and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.88, according to SEMI. The book-to-bill ratio has been climbing since September 2011. In December, bookings climbed back above the $1 billion mark.

01/23/2012 

Intel plans $12.5 billion semiconductor capital expeditures in 2012; Samsung plans $12.2 billion. Watch for wide and growing separation between these two companies and their competition, says IC Insights.

01/23/2012 

Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K. developed a ruthenium material able to form a film up to 6x the normal depth for capacitor electrodes used in DRAM, working with Professor Seiji Ogo of Kyushu University.

01/20/2012 

USCi will develop next-generation silicon carbide (SiC) devices with AIXTRON SE's VP2400 hot-wall CVD tool. USCi plans to install the CVD system in Q3 2012.