Online information source for semiconductor professionals

A major semiconductor manufacturer based in Asia has selected an ‘ORION’ single wafer cleaning system from FSI International to meet anticipated resist stripping requirements for front-end-of-line (FEOL) cleaning processes in advanced IC manufacturing. FSI expects to ship this evaluation FSI ORION single wafer cleaning system to this customer during its fiscal 2010 third quarter. 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 >>

A leading foundry in Taiwan has selected Camtek's Falcon Automatic Optical Inspection (AOI) system, for metrology and inspection solutions for the 3D IC processes. The Falcon 830plus system was evaluated and selected over its competitors after demonstrating the best-of-breed performance in this challenging arena, according to the company. 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 >>

China-based analog specialty foundry, CSMC Technologies (CSMC) is using SOI wafers from Soitec for high voltage IC applications, initially aimed for colour plasma display panel (PDP) driver ICs and other mixed signal and analog applications. Read more >>

Profitability of semiconductor manufacturers increased to 21.4% in the fourth quarter of 2009, the highest level since the fourth quarter of 2000 when it reached 24.7%, according to new data from iSuppli Corp. Although the rebound is partly due to the recovery in the market, the market research firm believes that the improved profitability is also a condition of reduced capital expenditures and other cost management strategies. Read more >>

As part of the wrapping-up of the former DRAM memory producer, Qimonda an online auction of approximately 100 tools from its 300mm front-end fabrication operations in Dresden is set to start on March 16th, 2010 and to close on Tuesday  March 30th 2010. The majority of the tool set at Qimonda’s 300mm fab in Richmond, Virginia was previously block-sold to Texas Instruments. Read more >>

IMEC is to use Synopsys TCAD (Technology Computer-Aided Design) finite-element method tools for characterizing and optimizing the reliability and electrical performance of through-silicon vias (TSVs) as part of the nano-electronics research centre’s to accelerate development efforts.
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In the March update to The McClean Report, IC Insights is now forecasting that the worldwide IC market is expected to rebound 27% in 2010 to US$253 billion. At the beginning of the year, the market research firm expected a 15% growth over 2009, though had then suggested that should first quarter sales show any growth over fourth quarter 2009, then a 25% plus growth figure would occur. The first quarter is seasonally the weakest in a given year in the industry. IC Insights believes that preliminary data shows that the first quarter saw revenue grow 3% over fourth quarter figures. Read more >>