'Round The Circuit

Sematech, SUNY tackle NGL

International Sematech has signed a five-year agreement with the State University of New York (SUNY) at Albany intended to speed the development of next-generation lithography. The consortium and the university will collaborate in a program to develop the infrastructure for EUV lithography. The work will explore mask blanks, resist, and EUV extensions. The partners will conduct the research at the university's 300-mm wafer cleanroom as part of the recently launched International Sematech North.

The EUV research will complement work under way at Sematech in Austin, TX. The agreement calls for the consortium to define the technical program, manage it, and staff the facility. For its part, the university will provide the facilities, staff, and funding. The Albany school recently built two 300-mm cleanrooms as part of a $1 billion state initiative to attract high-tech business to New York.

The partners aim to create an EUV infrastructure by 2007, says Kevin Kemp, International Sematech's EUV program manager. The consortium will send a team of approximately 10 members to Albany to help establish the program there. At full sail, the program will have a staff of approximately 30 Sematech employees and assignees. The staff will include more than 500 members from the SUNY-Albany faculty and staff, as well as scientists and researchers from national laboratories. Engineers and technicians from materials and equipment suppliers also will take part.

Subsystems segment to grow

The market for semiconductor process delivery and control subsystems looks healthy despite the industry's poor performance, according to VLSI Research. The market research firm forecasts an increase of 11.4% in revenues to $840 million for the first quarter of 2003 over the fourth quarter of 2002. The market should grow an additional 26% in the second quarter of 2003.

Delivery and control subsystems encompass applications involving gases, liquids, power, vacuum, temperature, and optics, the firm notes. Many are sold as integrated subsystems. The demand for 300-mm process equipment is a primary driver in the growth of this market. Revenues for 2003 are expected to reach $3.9 billion, an increase of 12% over 2002 revenues but a decline of 46% from the peak market in 2000.

JMAR claims litho leap

A developer of laser plasma sources says a recent breakthrough makes its technology "a viable contender" as a solution for nonoptical lithography. JMAR Technologies of San Diego used its beta-model source to make 130-nm features during a test conducted under a program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense. JMAR claims the results mean its collimated plasma lithography (CPL) source is a leading NGL contender.

The supplier's research division used a 1X mask from IBM's Advanced Mask Facility in Burlington, VT, to reach the resolution needed to print the feature size. Researchers combined the beam line with JMAR's NanoPulstar stepper. The company plans to ship the CPL source to its Burlington facility, where it will be tested following integration with a stepper.

"Our CPL source testing makes it increasingly clear that JMAR's technological approach offers the semiconductor industry a relatively straightforward, nonoptical approach to sub-100-nm lithography," asserts Ronald Walrod, president and CEO of JMAR. "We believe JMAR's new CPL source is just the catalyst needed to erase past misgivings about NGL x-ray sources."

In early February JMAR announced that it is selling its JMAR Precision Systems unit in Chatsworth, CA, as part of a restructuring plan. The company will consolidate its remaining research, nanolithography, and semiconductor operations into a single business with three specialized divisions. Walrod says the streamlining plan will permit JMAR to focus on commercializing its CPL technology.

ASTM updates standard

ASTM has published a revised version of the standard for the metric system. The Use of the International System of Units (SI: The Modern Metric System (IEEE/ASTM SI-10-2002) is the American national standard for the modern metric system. The 69-page publication supersedes all other documents.

Contents include SI units and symbols, use of SI, and four annexes. The annexes cover tables of conversion factors, rules for conversion, comments on the use of SI, and the development of the international system of units. The standard describes quantities and units for properties such as mass, force, weight, temperature, pressure, and kinetic energy. Downloads are available for $50 in North America and $55 elsewhere at www.astm.org/sitesearch under SI10.

Ting heads SEMI China

SEMI has promoted Yee-Ming Ting to president of SEMI China. Ting joined the 2500-member trade association in July 2002, serving as vice president and general manager of the China office.

The Shanghai native received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from City College of New York and a master's degree in electronic engineering from New York University. A former test equipment designer with Bendix, Ting later served in various capacities for 31 years with IBM. While with IBM China he served as program director of the Wireless Application and Development Center.