Online information source for semiconductor professionals

Continuing a ten-year primary supplier deal, Sandia National Laboratories has re-selected Matheson Tri-Gas to supply gases and equipment. The new supply deal includes industrial, specialty and electronic gases required at the Sandia’s labs. Read more >>

PVA TePla has received an order for two of its floatzone crystal growing systems from Tianjin HuanOu Semiconductor Material & Technology. The equipment is expected to be used for producing high-purity semiconductor components. The order will be processed through to the first quarter of 2011. Read more >>

The last semiconductor downturn saw engineers focus on cost reduction that will now have an impact on the supplier front. In the CMP consumables sector, a new report from Techcet Group, “CMP Consumables 2010 Critical Materials Report,” highlights that work on process optimization has led to slurry dilution efforts and new CMP pads being qualified that have driven down consumable costs. Despite renewed growth, combined CMP pad and slurry market is forecast to be between US$1.36 billion and US$1.57 billion in 2010, Techcet does not expect the market to return to 2007 record levels until 2012. Read more >>

Silicon wafer producer, MEMC has received Inotera Memories 2009 Outstanding Supplier Award based on its high-quality wafers and support services, despite the global economic challenges of last year and the bust and boom period that subsequently followed. Read more >>

Silicon-based epitaxy wafer specialist IQE has reported record second half year revenues of £31.2 million with full-year revenues of £52.7 million, down from £60.5 million in 2008. The company produced a pre-tax profit £2.1 million compared to a £1.4 million loss in 2008. Read more >>

An investment of US$2 million is planned by SAFC Hitech, a division of the Sigma-Aldrich to boost production of of trimethylgallium (TMG) at its Bromborough, Wirral, UK manufacturing plant. Additional funding of £300,000 was given by the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA).
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CMP pad producer, NexPlanar has received US$3.5 million in venture debt financing from ATEL Ventures to support a production capacity expansion due to increased customer demand. NexPlanar is venture-backed by BlueRun Ventures, InterWest Partners, SmartForest Ventures, Fina Ventures, Intel Capital and Entegris. Read more >>

Although the drastic nature of the production cuts in the first half of 2009 impacted demand for semiconductor materials, the second half recovery saw the materials market only contract 19%, according to a new report from SEMI. In the last major downturn in 2001, the materials market decline 26%. Semiconductor materials market revenues totalled US$34.6 billion globally in 2009, while total wafer fabrication materials and packaging materials were US$17.9 billion and US$16.8 billion, respectively. Silicon revenues contributed to the year-over-year decline in the wafer fabrication materials market. Read more >>

Having been developing SOI technology in house for many years and can offer partially depleted SOI, fully depleted SOI, strained SOI and other SiGe-on-insulator substrates has finally joined the SOI Industry Consortium. Read more >>

A return to normal seasonal IC demand dynamics coupled to a rebuild in inventory levels from ICs though to silicon wafers will push wafer demand up nearly 30% in 2010, according to Gartner. Wafer demand in the fourth quarter of 2009 is estimated to increase 7% compared with the preceding quarter and is expected to grow a further 2 to 3% in the third and fourth quarters. Read more >>