Alliances
For computing applications, Winbond will use the technology exclusively for Infineon. Other special application memory developed by Winbond based on the technology will result in license fees and royalties for Infineon. The companies also intend to jointly develop memories targeted for mobile applications.
The companies' previous May 2002 agreement allowed Winbond to manufacture DRAMs for computing applications at its 200mm plant in Hsinchu using Infineon's 0.11micron DRAM trench technology exclusively for Infineon. First products from the new 300mm plant, which will be built in Taichung, Taiwan, are expected at the end of 2005.
MKS Instruments and Umetrics are jointly offering a turn-key solution for advanced process control (APC) and e-diagnostics in semiconductor manufacturing. The alliance combines MKS' expertise in semiconductor control technologies with Umetrics' multivariate analysis and modelling capabilities. A fault detection and classification (FDC) application has been developed as part of MKS' recently introduced TOOLweb product suite. Swedish company Umetrics has experience in applying its techniques to the semiconductor, pharmaceutical, petrochemical and pulp & paper industries.
FEI and Zyvex have signed an agreement to provide real-world solutions for electrical/IC probing applications. The agreement calls for the companies to share marketing, sales, and applications engineering resources to create new solutions that combine Zyvex' nanomanipulation and probing technologies (NanoWorks) with FEI's expertise with SEM/FIB systems to analyse nanoscale features in complex semiconductor devices. The need to probe sub-100nm features is relatively new to the semiconductor industry.