Carl Zeiss SMT acquires ALIS Corporation
Dr. Dirk Stenkamp, Managing Director of Carl Zeiss NTS, states: "The Helium ion microscopy technology developed by ALIS complements our market leading scanning electron microscopy (SEM) technology and will be a key element of our future technology roadmap. It offers unrivalled opportunities for sub-nanometer imaging, depth-of-focus capabilities and new image contrast features. This will enable our customers in semiconductor manufacturing, materials and life science applications to further push existing technical boundaries and to meet their roadmap requirements beyond the current decade".
ALIS Corporation, founded in 2005 by Bill Ward and Nick Economou, is a developer of next-generation, atomic-level helium ion microscopy. This technology targets at substantially improved resolution and faster image acquisition over existing electron microscopes.
The company currently employs 36 scientists and engineers.
Bill Ward, President and CEO of ALIS Corporation, together with his team, is excited to join Carl Zeiss SMT: "To be part of a leading global company opens new opportunities to advance this disruptive technology and will decisively accelerate the market readiness of our solution".
ALIS will be closely integrated within the Nanotechnology Systems Division of Carl Zeiss SMT. The acquisition is expected to close during the third quarter of 2006.