HALF MOON BAY, CA  -- Collaboration through joint development projects will be necessary for the semiconductor industry to economically deliver advanced materials required for next generation devices, according to speakers at the SEMI Strategic Materials Conference.

In the past it has taken from 15 to 20 years from pure research to high volume manufacturing, according to SMC keynoter Ken David, director of the components research group at Intel Corp. "We don't have that kind of time anymore," he said. "In order to realize the potential of new materials, we must shorten the time between discovery and implementation," and that means collaboration between device makers and equipment and materials suppliers, according to David.

Innovation in materials provides a path to extend Moore's Law well into the next decade through what he called "equivalent scaling" -- defined as geometric scaling assisted by innovation.

Every major introduction of a new material into the semiconductor process has been met by significant challenges. For example, the shift from aluminum to copper interconnects forced Intel to change the way it designed wafer fabs to avoid possible copper contamination, said David. A second example, the introduction of low-k dielectrics, was "one of the most surprising and difficult transitions," he said. "There have been a lot of missteps [in low-k]. We all learned the hard way," he said.

During a panel discussion Gene Banucci, chairman of ATMI, said it was essential for a materials company to collaborate when developing new processes otherwise the material was "going down a big dark hole." For its part, ATMI has about 30 joint development projects going on at any one time. "We have to work with other people to get things done," said Banucci.

The sharing of intellectual property arising from collaborative efforts was a hot topic for discussion. Gary Dauser, program director for IBM's intellectual property and licensing organization, said the simplest method was the "yours, mine and ours" approach. "IP that you develop is yours but I'm licensed to it; IP I develop is mine but you're licensed to it; and things we jointly develop...we can do with it what we want," he said. Dauser said the issue becomes more complex when the partners want to extend the IP usage to projects involving companies outside of the original joint development partners.

Jerry Coder, president of IC fabrication materials for DuPont Electronic Technologies, pointed out that the economics of developing materials for advanced semiconductor processes are getting poorer and poorer in terms of the return on investment. As a result, some major chemical companies have withdrawn from the semiconductor industry. "It is a problem for all of us. We need to find a model that is a win-win-win situation for all parties that are involved in that collaboration," he said.

John Poate, chief technology officer for Axcelis Technologies, said the materials used by the industry over the past 40 to 50 years have essentially been "gifts from God", and that it will get a lot harder from here. New materials, such as high-k dielectrics, are only just being explored and their successful use will require a lot more understanding, he said.

"The big IP winners will be the organizations or companies who understand the interplay between circuit design, the processing and these new materials and new structures so you can leverage what you have got," said Poate.

While collaboration is essential, speakers generally agreed it was not feasible to bundle IP developed jointly by equipment and materials companies into a single entity. Richard Faubert, president and CEO of AmberWave Systems, said the business models and infrastructure requirements for materials and equipment companies were so different that it would be nearly impossible to maintain the two under the one roof. "There are very different sets of competencies required to be a premium supplier in both places at the same time," he said.

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HALF MOON BAY, CA  -- This year's semiconductor downturn will be short and relatively painless thanks to lessons learned from the past, according to a panel of analysts at a recent SEMI conference.

The consensus is for semiconductor device sales growth to be flat in 2005, while chip equipment sales will be down from 10 to 15 percent, said analysts participating in the ISS press conference. Excess inventory currently in the supply chain will be worked out of the system by the second quarter, and the second half will be better, they said.

Semico Research Corp. forecasts a 4.7% decline in semiconductors this year after 28% growth in 2004. "Although we're calling for a decline, we don't believe it's going to be as steep or as long as what we saw in the previous decline," said Jim Feldhan, president of Semicon. Double digit semiconductor growth will resume in 2006, at 14.6%, he added.

Longer term, Feldan is optimistic over the prospects for capital equipment market growth because of the rapid move towards more advanced semiconductor manufacturing technologies. In 2004, only 3% of wafer demand was for 90-nm technology, whereas the 90-and 65-nm nodes would account for 27% of wafers in 2008, according to Semico.

Moshe Handelsman, president of Advanced Forecasting Inc., said the softness experienced in late 2004 would continue into Q2 this year, after which growth will resume. In terms of wafer shipments, Advanced Forecasting sees a continued decline in shipments in 2005, although the decline will be mild. Handelsman said the industry has learned valuable lessons from the last downturn which will help it weather future periods of slow market growth. The recession of 2001 "frightened all the players," and they are now more lean and mean, he explained.

IC Insights is forecasting a decline of 2% in device sales this year, and 8 to 9% growth next year. "We are actually very encouraged about 2006," said Bill McClean, president of IC Insights. "We think most of the correction in this IC industry cycle will happen in the first half of 2005."

Structural changes in the industry - such as the increasing role of wafer foundries and a lengthening of the period between technology nodes - would lead to more efficient capital spending and decrease the magnitude of overspending in the chip industry, according to McClean.

IC Insights also predicts that in 2005 China will emerge as the world's largest consumer of ICs, surpassing Japan and North America, account for more than 20% of global IC consumption. That's up from 7% in 2001.

The semiconductor materials market will continue to grow over the next several years, from $28 billion in 2004 to an estimated $34 billion in 2007, noted Dan Tracy, senior director, industry research and statistics for SEMI. In 2005, the market for packaging materials will grow 8% to just over $11 billion, while wafer fab materials will grow 6% to almost $17 billion, according to a SEMI forecast.

Double digit growth will be experienced by some materials sectors, including low-k dielectrics, SOI, solder balls, CMP and laminate substrates. In the period from 2004 to 2007, compound annual growth rates for silicon wafers shipments will be 4.5% globally, and 10% in Asia Pacific, according to Tracy.

Gartner Dataquest is forecasting about 5% growth in semiconductor device sales this year, and a drop of 15% for capital equipment. Klaus-Dieter Rinnen, managing vice president, semiconductors, said the downturn in 2005 will be "shallower and shorter" than 2001. "By the end of Q1 we should be moving out of the [current] excess inventory situation," he said.

Rinnen noted that, unlike during the last down cycle, the industry this time has two weapons to defend itself. "Cost control will be its shield protecting companies against market pressures, but innovation will be its sword with which companies can actively defend and stimulate and open new markets," he said.

PALO ALTO, CA -- Agilent Technologies will buy closely-held Wavics, a Korea-based designer and manufacturer of power amplifier modules for mobile handsets, for an undisclosed amount, the companies said today.

Wavics holds patents on power amplifier technology said to reduces battery power consumption. Agilent plans to combine the Wavics technology with its miniature FBAR (film bulk acoustic resonator) filters to create higher-performance CDMA and W-CDMA front-end modules. This will offer handset manufacturers a significant reduction in PCB space.

In a press release, Bryan Ingram, vice president and general manager of the Wireless Semiconductor Division in Agilent's Semiconductor Products Group. "Our mutual customers will benefit by being able to design smaller, thinner clamshell handsets with more features and talk time than previously available."

Wavics was founded in 2000 and is privately held. It employs approximately 55 people,

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GUANGDONG PROVINCE, CHINA -- Are wages among factory workers in China about to rise? Reports from several news sources seem to indicate that a massive shortage of manpower coupled with modest inflation of the national currency will lead to higher costs for manufacturers later this year.

Global Sources this week said that inflation is ahead due to anticipated appreciation of the China's currency, the yuan, against the U.S. dollar. The timing is especially bad for the region, which has endured steady price inflation and flat wages. Local companies are facing persistent labor shortages and China has been recording more than 2 million vacancies annually, Global Sources said.

Separately, a report today said the local government is set to raise salaries for workers by 16.7%, to $70 a month.

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SAN JOSE  -- The 90-day moving average sales of North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers was $1.24 billion in December, good for a book-to-bill of 0.95, according to SEMI.

For the month $95 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed.

The three-month average of global bookings in December was $1.24 billion, down 7% from revised November figures but up 4.6% year-on-year.

Global billings were $1.31 billion, down 2.6% from November and up 36% percent from a year ago.

"Based on these preliminary figures, we now expect worldwide sales of new semiconductor equipment by North American suppliers to total $16.5 billion in 2004, an increase of more than 60% over the prior year," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "The cyclic bookings peak occurred in June 2004 and total bookings in December are 23% below that level."
 

SAN JOSE, Calif., January 20, 2005 -- North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.24 billion in orders in December 2004 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.95 according to the December 2004 Book-to-Bill Report published today by SEMI. A book-to-bill of 0.95 means that $95 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in December 2004 was $1.24 billion. The bookings figure is seven percent below the revised November 2004 level of $1.33 billion and 4.6 percent above the $1.18 billion in orders posted in December 2003.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in December 2004 was $1.31 billion. The billings figure is 2.6 percent below the revised November 2004 level and 36 percent above the December 2003 billings level of $963 million.

"Based on these preliminary figures, we now expect worldwide sales of new semiconductor equipment by North American suppliers to total $16.5 billion in 2004, an increase of more than 60 percent over the prior year," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "The cyclic bookings peak occurred in June 2004 and total bookings in December are 23 percent below that level."

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars.

SAN JOSE, Calif., January 20, 2005 -- North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.24 billion in orders in December 2004 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.95 according to the December 2004 Book-to-Bill Report published today by SEMI. A book-to-bill of 0.95 means that $95 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in December 2004 was $1.24 billion. The bookings figure is seven percent below the revised November 2004 level of $1.33 billion and 4.6 percent above the $1.18 billion in orders posted in December 2003.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in December 2004 was $1.31 billion. The billings figure is 2.6 percent below the revised November 2004 level and 36 percent above the December 2003 billings level of $963 million.

"Based on these preliminary figures, we now expect worldwide sales of new semiconductor equipment by North American suppliers to total $16.5 billion in 2004, an increase of more than 60 percent over the prior year," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "The cyclic bookings peak occurred in June 2004 and total bookings in December are 23 percent below that level."

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars.

SAN JOSE, Calif., January 20, 2005 -- North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.24 billion in orders in December 2004 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.95 according to the December 2004 Book-to-Bill Report published today by SEMI. A book-to-bill of 0.95 means that $95 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in December 2004 was $1.24 billion. The bookings figure is seven percent below the revised November 2004 level of $1.33 billion and 4.6 percent above the $1.18 billion in orders posted in December 2003.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in December 2004 was $1.31 billion. The billings figure is 2.6 percent below the revised November 2004 level and 36 percent above the December 2003 billings level of $963 million.

"Based on these preliminary figures, we now expect worldwide sales of new semiconductor equipment by North American suppliers to total $16.5 billion in 2004, an increase of more than 60 percent over the prior year," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "The cyclic bookings peak occurred in June 2004 and total bookings in December are 23 percent below that level."

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars.

SAN JOSE, Calif., January 20, 2005 -- North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.24 billion in orders in December 2004 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.95 according to the December 2004 Book-to-Bill Report published today by SEMI. A book-to-bill of 0.95 means that $95 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in December 2004 was $1.24 billion. The bookings figure is seven percent below the revised November 2004 level of $1.33 billion and 4.6 percent above the $1.18 billion in orders posted in December 2003.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in December 2004 was $1.31 billion. The billings figure is 2.6 percent below the revised November 2004 level and 36 percent above the December 2003 billings level of $963 million.

"Based on these preliminary figures, we now expect worldwide sales of new semiconductor equipment by North American suppliers to total $16.5 billion in 2004, an increase of more than 60 percent over the prior year," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "The cyclic bookings peak occurred in June 2004 and total bookings in December are 23 percent below that level."

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars.

SAN JOSE, Calif., January 20, 2005 -- North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.24 billion in orders in December 2004 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.95 according to the December 2004 Book-to-Bill Report published today by SEMI. A book-to-bill of 0.95 means that $95 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in December 2004 was $1.24 billion. The bookings figure is seven percent below the revised November 2004 level of $1.33 billion and 4.6 percent above the $1.18 billion in orders posted in December 2003.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in December 2004 was $1.31 billion. The billings figure is 2.6 percent below the revised November 2004 level and 36 percent above the December 2003 billings level of $963 million.

"Based on these preliminary figures, we now expect worldwide sales of new semiconductor equipment by North American suppliers to total $16.5 billion in 2004, an increase of more than 60 percent over the prior year," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "The cyclic bookings peak occurred in June 2004 and total bookings in December are 23 percent below that level."

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars.

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OYSTER BAY, NY -- The industry devoted to digital rights management is shaping up into two camps with differing value chains and business alliances, according to a new study by ABI Research.

Ten years ago, whether a consumer received audiovisual content via cable or satellite, the situation was homogenous: service providers allying with equipment vendors to ensure that access was provided only to those who paid for it. Today, NDS, Nagra, Irdeto take advantage of their existing relationships in DRM.

But now that group of traditional alliances has been joined by another: DRM vendors such as Microsoft, RealNetworks and Apple that work closely with the content-owning community to address the need for legal, downloadable materials that can be accessed through broadband networks. In time this channel will begin to become end-device agnostic.

These two camps, says director of broadband and residential entertainment technologies Vamsi Sistla, strive for the same goal -- the greatest number of consumers purchasing the rights they control -- but are approaching it from different directions.

Global DRM revenues will grow by at least 28% in 2005, Sistla forecasts, and the highest growth opportunities are among telcos, broadband, mobile and in portable markets. It is here, where DRM vendors partner with content owners and distributors, that the last decade's profound changes in global networking show their fullest impact.

PALO ALTO, CA -- Agilent Technologies has promoted William Sullivan as the company's next president and CEO, effective March 1. Sullivan, currently Agilent's executive vice president and COO, succeeds Ned Barnholt. 
 
Sullivan has had overall responsibility for the Electronic Products and Solutions Group, Agilent's largest business group. He was formerly senior vice president and general manager of Agilent's Semiconductor Products Group.
 
Barnholt is retiring as chairman, president and CEO of the company he helped launch following its spin-off from Hewlett-Packard in 1999.
 
"The past six years as Agilent's CEO have been rewarding ones for me," said Barnholt. "While I will miss this important part of my life, I look forward to what lies ahead."
 
James G. Cullen, who has served on the board of directors since 2000, will become non-executive chairman when Barnholt retires in March. At that time, Sullivan will join the board. Barnholt will stay on as chairman emeritus as long as needed to ensure a smooth transition.

Thin-film technologies continue to evolve and their use is broadening as component manufacturers are considering replacing conventional thick-film processes to manufacture smaller components and parts. Reason: thin-films permit new families of products, modifying and enhancing the properties of bulk material by the deposition of a top thin layer having different composition and morphology, says a new study from Business Communications Co. 

Global sales of thin-film raw materials hit $7.1 billion in 2004, estimates say, and are projected to reach $13.5 billion by 2009, an average annual growth rate of 13.7%, BCC says. 
Chemical deposition methods (chemical vapor deposition, chemical solution deposition, plating type methods) accounts for over 70% of the global market for thin-film raw materials, driven by large sales of plating chemicals. Electronics accounts for 66% of total sales. 
Sales of thin-film materials for chemical processes increased during 2002-04 from $4.1 billion to $5.1 billion, and are expected to show an AAGR of 12.9% over the next five years, reaching $9.3 billion by 2009. 

Raw materials for physical processes (evaporation, sputter deposition and ionic deposition) rose to 28.6% from 24.8% of the total market for thin-film materials from 2002-04. Sales are projected to reach $4.2 billion by 2009, an AAGR of 15.7%. 

GREENVILLE, SC -- Kemet Corp. has filed a lawsuit against AVX Corp. to protect trade secrets relating to the development and manufacture of tantalum polymer capacitors. Kemet seeks damages and an injunction.

In the lawsuit, filed in South Carolina court, Kemet alleges that AVX had access to trade secrets after hiring a scientist from Kemet's technology group. The suit alleges that through this scientist, AVX learned certain trade secrets related to tantalum polymer capacitor manufacturing. AVX has since introduced similar products, Kemet said.

Kemet has produced the components since 1999, and they now constitute the fastest growing segment of this market.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- A subsidiary of Nam Tai Electronics has relocated to a new 600,000 sq. ft. factory in Shenzhen, the company said today.

J.I.C. Technology's new factory in the countryside of Baoan County is twice the size of its former plant. The manufacturing space is now 416,000 sq. ft., up from 152,000 sq. ft.

JIC also installed new chip on glass (COG) machines and upped capacity of COG and tape automated bonding with anisotropic conductive film products by 150%.

The former factory in downtown Baoan County was not suitable for high-tech operations and had limited space available for expansion.

 

BOSTON -- Teradyne Inc. posted a quarterly profit compared with a year-earlier loss.

The company posted a profit of $3.3 million in the fourth quarter, compared with a loss of $11.5 million a year earlier. Sales rose to $377 million from $357.6 million a year earlier. For the quarter sales were down 18% sequentially and up 5% year-over-year.

The company said in a statement that despite the slight increase in orders in the fourth quarter, customer demand remains tentative.

Teradyne forecasts first-quarter sales of $290 million and $310 million, with a loss between 24 and 31 cents a share. This guidance includes pre-tax restructuring and other charges of $13 million and a $2.5 million tax provision for foreign and state taxes.

Analysts on average had forecast the company to post first-quarter revenue of $343.18 million, according to Reuters Estimates.

On a conference call with analysts president Mike Bradley said the company's Connection Systems division has downsized its manufacturing footprint in U.S. in the wake of a sharp downturn in orders in the third quarter. The moves should reduce the company's breakeven point by $10 million a quarter.

"Our U.S. operations will become epicenter of design capabilities. Future growth in volume manufacturing will occur in low cost regions," Bradley said.

Connection Systems' orders were down over 20% sequentially in the fourth quarter. The division grew 39% for the year.

Connection Systems includes PCB bare-board manufacturing and connectors.

The company, which earlier this month laid off 320 employees at its Connection Systems and Assembly Test divisions and took a $11 million charge, said the semiconductor test market continues to be soft, mostly at the subcontractor level.

 

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TAIPEI -- Hon Hai Precision Industry yesterday forecast  first-quarter sales to rise 30% over last year, thanks to sustained demand from the holiday season.

Quoting chairman Terry Gou, the Taipei Times reported, "Overall, we feel the first quarter is quite good, compared to the same period last year as Christmas demand for consumer gadgets has not subsided as it did in the past," adding that a similar situation has occurred in other electronic segments.

"The first quarter will not be as slow as it was before," he said.

Hon Hai's fourth quarter sales were up 27% to NT$136.8 billion, from NT$107.8 billion year-on-year. For the year, the company said sales grew 26% to NT$413.4 billion.

Foxconn International Holdings, the company's handset unit, could gain as much as $432.6 million when it goes public on the Hong Kong exchange later this year, the Taipei Times reported. The company plans to spend 54% of the sale's proceeds to expand production in China, Hungary and South America.

Foxconn earned $134.5 million on sales of $2.1 billion in the nine months ended last September.