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Asia

Mitsubishi signs silicon pact

Mitsubishi plans to introduce a technology in Japan that promises to dramatically increase the speed of microchips. The Japanese electronics giant has signed a multiyear agreement with AmberWave Systems, a New Hampshire company that has pioneered strained-silicon technology. Developed at MIT, strained silicon enhances semiconductor speed by approximately 20 to 30% and significantly reduces power consumption, according to AmberWave.

The multiyear agreement calls for AmberWave to collaborate with Mitsubishi to sell the technology to merchant chipmakers, foundries, and wafer manufacturers in Japan. The Japanese firm, which will act as AmberWave's sales agent in the country, will offer test wafers and starter kits. Mitsubishi will also license AmberWave's intellectual property to Japanese companies. The alliance signifies that the semiconductor industry "is quickly moving toward the adoption of strained silicon throughout all levels of the semiconductor manufacturing supply chain," claims Mark Wolf, AmberWave's CEO.

Vendor signs China rep

Schlumberger Verification Systems of Concord, MA, has hired a sales agent for China. Seki Technotron will act as the exclusive agent for Schlumberger's line of overlay and CD metrology systems. Seki also will provide after-sales support. Based in Tokyo, the company has an office in Shanghai.

Jazz duets with ASMC

Jazz Semiconductor has teamed with Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. (ASMC) in Shanghai to produce mixed-signal and RF chips for China's rapidly expanding wireless market. The Newport Beach, CA­based manufacturer specializes in advanced bipolar CMOS and SiGe BiCMOS processes. The chipmaker will contribute process technology, engineering help, and marketing services. ASMC will manufacture devices at its 200-mm fab in Shanghai. The foundry company plans to process 30,000 wafers per month beginning in the fourth quarter of 2003.

The alliance strengthens ASMC's experience in BiCMOS technology. Citing a Chinese government source, Jazz notes that China is the largest consumer of mobile communications in the world. More than 200 million people subscribed to a mobile phone service in 2002, and the industry sold more than 100 million phones the same year, according to China's Ministry of Information Industry.

Consortium buys Veeco AFM

Selete and two Japanese photomask manufacturers have ordered Dimension X3D atomic-force microscopes from Veeco Instruments. The 11-member Japanese consortium will use the automated AFMs in its advanced photolithography program, Veeco says. The nondestructive Dimension X3D provides three-dimensional CD metrology and defect-review imaging for photomask manufacturing and other applications.

"The need to produce 'zero defect' photomasks as the critical defect size shrinks with the feature size becomes increasingly imperative," says Don Kania, president of Veeco Metrology. The company says market research indicates that the cost of a complete mask set for a single chip design will soon exceed $1 million as phase-shift mask and other enhancement techniques gain acceptance.

Partners tout OLED advance

Hanwha of Seoul, South Korea, and Plasmion of Hoboken, NJ, have entered into a partnership to commercialize Plasmion's negative-ion-beam deposition technology. The thin-film coating technology is used to produce high-quality coated glass from indium tin oxide for organic light-emitting diode display (OLED) substrates. Plasmion's president and CEO James A. Ionson notes that the joint initiative "is just the beginning of a strategic partnership that will combine Plasmion's expertise in thin-film deposition with Hanwha's leading polymer film­based technologies and resources to revolutionize the way displays are coated."

Plasmion's technology controls the discharge of ionized particles to a substrate, resulting in coatings that are thinner, harder, and smoother than conventional thin films. It can be used on magnetron sputtering equipment, eliminating the expense of replacing existing toolsets. Hanwha has ordered a $1.25 million system to begin the manufacture of the material and announced plans to begin full-scale manufacturing in December 2002. The company has also invested in Plasmion with rights to produce OLED substrate products in Korea and Taiwan.

Mallinckrodt opens labs

Mallinckrodt Baker of Phillipsburg, NJ, has opened two applications laboratories to support a line of cleaning chemistries and chemicals. The labs are in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Seoul, South Korea, and are staffed with fab-experienced engineers. The facilities will provide support for Mallinckrodt's J.T. Baker line of high-purity chemicals in Southeast Asia, China, Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea. The New Jersey­based supplier sells products under the brand names of J.T. Baker and Mallinckrodt Laboratory Chemicals.

Europe

Reclaim plant gets facelift

Rockwood Specialties of Princeton, NJ, says it expects to finish refurbishing its wafer reclaim facility in southern France by the end of June 2003. Located in Gréasque, the upgraded plant will have greater production capacity and improved technological capabilities than it does at present, Rockwood says. Key aspects of the upgrade are improvements in the automation of final cleaning and better process environments, Rockwood says.

The reclaim specialist asserts the project will improve the company's penetration in Europe for 200-mm wafers and help it maintain its share of the market for 150-mm wafers. For 200-mm wafers, Rockwood will increase its reclaim capacity from 370,000 to 550,000 wafers per year. In addition to France, the company has wafer reclaim plants in the UK and the United States.

Australia

Australian show to debut

The capital city of South Australia will be the site of that continent's first national electronics industry conference. Cohosts for the Technology Futures Conference­2003, scheduled for May 14­16 in Adelaide, are the Australian Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association (AEEMA) and South Australia's Electronics Industry Association (EIA). Organizers say the idea for the inaugural event emerged from successful technology futures conferences held in South Australia over the past two years.

Adelaide was chosen because a strong electronics industry cluster has developed there in the past 30 years, says Mike Rann, South Australia's premier. In addition, Adelaide has three universities and many technology colleges. The region is also home to companies such as Motorola, EDS, and Hewlett-Packard. The industry is growing at a rate of 20% annually, according to Rann.

Angus Robinson and Jennifer Liston of AEEMA have more information about the conference. They can be reached at arobinson@aeema.asn.au and jliston@aeema.asn.au, respectively.

Middle East

Lytron names Israeli distributor

Lytron, a manufacturer of heat transfer systems and components, has named Israel Scientific Instruments (ISI) as its distributor in Israel. ISI will sell all products in Lytron's line, including semiconductor equipment. Lytron's product list includes recirculating chillers, copper tube fine heat exchangers, and ambient cooling systems. ISI has operated in the high-tech sphere for more than 32 years, the company says. Lytron is headquartered in Woburn, MA.