Intel getting back into the memory biz. Could this be what the new fab is for?
biz.yahoo.com
Ovonyx Receives Investment from Intel Companies To Work Together on Memory Technology
TROY, Mich., Feb. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Ovonyx, Inc., a semiconductor memory technology developer, announced today that Intel Capital has invested in the company. Ovonyx is a joint venture with Energy Conversion Devices, Inc. (``ECD') (Nasdaq: ENER - news). Financial terms were not disclosed.
Ovonyx is developing phase-change semiconductor memory devices, termed Ovonic Unified Memory (OUM). OUM memory technology promises to enable significantly faster write and erase speeds and higher cycling endurance than conventional memory types. It has been used in rewritable CD and DVD discs and may have potential as a replacement for such memory types as Flash, SRAM and DRAM.
Ovonyx also announced it has licensed its OUM memory technology to Intel and that the two companies will work together to develop and demonstrate the feasibility of high-density, non-volatile memory based on the technology.
``The investment will be used to further the strategic goals of Ovonyx, principally by supporting ongoing development activities,' said Tyler Lowrey, CEO of Ovonyx. ``These goals include product development to exploit the phase- change technology in the nonvolatile memory and embedded memory/logic marketplace and continuing to expand our patent position.'
``Intel continuously develops and fosters technology that has the potential to improve the computing experience. We believe that innovations in materials will enable us to take silicon devices beyond perceived scaling limits for the continued rapid advancement of the digital world,' said Dr. Sunlin Chou, Vice President and General Manager, Technology and Manufacturing Group, Intel Corporation.
``I am very pleased that Intel and Ovonyx have established this relationship,' said Stanford R. Ovshinsky, President and CEO of Energy Conversion Devices, Inc. and original inventor of the phase-change memory process. ``This is a great opportunity for the phase-change memory technology to be widely commercialized in semiconductor applications.'
About Ovonyx
Ovonyx is a joint venture between Tyler Lowrey, former Chief Technical Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Micron Technology, and ECD. It was formed to commercialize semiconductor memory applications of the proprietary phase-change technology originally developed by ECD (www.ovonic.com ). Ovonyx nonvolatile memory technology can offer significantly faster write and erase speeds and higher cycling endurance than conventional Flash memory. It also has the advantage of a simple fabrication process that allows the design of semiconductor chips with embedded nonvolatile memory using only a few additional mask steps. Additional information about Ovonyx and its memory technology is available at www.ovonyx.com
SOURCE: Ovonyx, Inc. |
