INDUSTRY NEWS

ROUND THE CIRCUIT

Foundries offer copper

TSMC says it is the first pure-play foundry to offer a commercially available copper process. The Taiwanese company developed the 0.18-µm capability at its R&D facility in Hsinchu. The copper is placed on the top two layers in a six-layer, CMOS metallization process. The metal resistance of the dual-damascene process is 1.6 times lower than aluminum or tungsten metallization, according to TSMC. Additional benefits include higher electromigration reliability of and via series resistance fives times lower than that of tungsten plug vias, the company says.

Because the two-layer capability fits the foundry's existing 0.18-µm CMOS process it needs no special library or EDA design tool support. The foundry plans to develop an all-layer copper process in the near future. The new process is available at the company's 8-in. fabs in Hsinchu's Science-Based Park. Full production will eventually include TSMC's new Fab 6.

Meanwhile, TSMC's Hsinchu neighbor, UMC, has reported making 0.18-µm devices with two layers of copper. Like TSMC, the foundry says it is developing an all-copper interconnect process, with the promise of a six-layer process in the cards. News reports say UMC will make its first all-copper ICs for San Jose­based Xilinx, while design house Altera of San Jose is working with TSMC on all-layer copper interconnects on chips with 0.13-µm linewidths.

Tool group gets new prez

Edward D. Graham Jr. has succeeded Paul Peercy as president of SEMI/Sematech, recently renamed the Semiconductor Industry Suppliers Association. Peercy left the nonprofit consortium of equipment, materials, and software providers to become dean of the college of engineering at the University of Wisconsin. Before joining SEMI/Sematech, Graham worked at Sandia National Laboratories and held several positions at the Albuquerque-based R&D facility in semiconductor development and technology. At Sandia he was a member of the technical staff in the semiconductor devices division, manager of the semiconductor products department, and director of facilities operations and maintenance. Most recently, he served as director of operations and engineering. Graham holds a PhD in electrical engineering from North Carolina State University.

SEMI/Sematech changed its name in December to the Semiconductor Industry Suppliers Association to emphasize the organization's role in supplying the tools and materials for the worldwide chip industry. The consortium has 130 member companies.

Alliance backs automation

A new nonprofit alliance of automation providers plans to champion the use of open networks on the factory floor. Formed in October during ISA Tech/99 in Philadelphia, the Industrial Automation Open Networking Alliance (IAONA) hopes to accelerate the adoption of Ethernet and TCP/IP in industrial automation. IAONA says its mission is to encourage the growth of open networking by identifying and resolving issues, holding forums, and organizing technical and marketing committees. Additional goals include sponsoring educational programs and making recommendations to standards-setting groups. The alliance will not act as a standards organization. On November 24, 1999, the state of California officially designated the alliance a self-governing nonprofit corporation.

IAONA has 21 member companies, all selling factory control systems and Ethernet systems. The alliance's chairman is Cornelius "Pete" Peterson, president, founder, and CEO of NETsilicon.

The alliance met during the Allen-Bradley Automation Fair in early December in Long Beach, CA. The discussion agenda included topics such as determinism, real-time response, power mapping, redundancy, and security. Information: Chip Stockton, 858/673-1372; http://www.iaona.com.

Spin-on pact could help yields

Yield improvements and improved temperature management are among the benefits predicted by the partners in a recently signed agreement covering spin-on materials delivery. Honeywell Electronic Materials' wafer fabrication materials unit and Microbar, a manufacturer of chemical management systems, will collaborate to develop bulk delivery of spin-on materials for high-volume wafer processing. The partners hope to develop a fully automated system that will provide a continuous supply of chemicals to the process tool. The system will be designed to reduce chemical waste and equipment downtime caused by frequent bottle changing. The companies say yield improvements will come as a result of reduced particle formation. The partners will also explore chemical recovery and recycling in order to minimize cost of ownership.

Microbar will install its spin-on materials delivery tool, the SOM 2000, at Honeywell's STAR R&D center in Sunnyvale, CA. The tool will be used with a spin-on coater system for wafer process testing. The companies will examine process repeatability, process throughput, particle analysis, and temperature control as key data points. Information: http://www.honeywell.com.

MicroHome | Search | Current Issue | MicroArchives
Buyers Guide | Media Kit