Betty - Please, this board would be much improved if you didn't make a personal jab at me every time you want to disagree with something I say. I'm happy to be corrected as to facts, or to be contradicted as to opinions, but I (like most people) get offended when it is personal in tone.
I haven't been following this for a little while. The last word I had is that IBM was examining both 248nm DUV and XRL (using a stepper from SVG) for a possible future 1 gigabyte fab.
techweb.cmp.com
I assume from what you say that you know for a fact that IBM is installing a synchrotron in the new fab and has ordered, or plans to order, a number of x-ray steppers, probably from SAL. This is indeed interesting news and would not bode well for Cymer in the long term. Although IBM's production numbers do not make them a leading player in terms of how much semi equipment they purchase, the building of a next-generation fab with XRL would provide the necessary "first line". This would give XRL a big boost, since volume manufacturers would very much prefer not to go first, paying for a full fab without knowing what bugs might pop up in the transition from one-bay R&D technology to a working production line.
Also, the math in your post to Tulvio was a little confusing. Let me sum up what I got from it. A synchrotron costs about $25 million but provides light for a number of steppers. JMAR's point source only costs $2MM for a stand-alone unit. Leaving aside any possible performance differences, a synchotron does not make economic sense unless a facility installs at least 12 XRL steppers in a building. If this is not what you were saying, please respond. |
