Mark Osborne, Editor-in-Chief, Semiconductor Fabtech

ABSTRACT
Capital expenditure related to 300mm fab ramps has remained strong throughout
2006; however new fab announcements have declined significantly in the second half of the year compared with the first. That scenario is expected to reverse in 2007 as a number of new fab announcements are expected, and the number of first phase tool installs will hit a new record high! Memory fabs are leading the way with aggressive fab plans, with new builds, ramp rates and in some cases massive capacity levels far exceeding the current average size of 300mm fabs. This report therefore focuses on the activity taking place in the memory market that includes both DRAM & NAND Flash.