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STMicro, Ovonyx expand OUM memory efforts
By Mark LaPedus
Semiconductor Business News
(02/04/03 02:51 p.m. EST)
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SANTA CLARA, Calif.--Gearing up for the next-generation memory market, STMicroelectronics Inc. said it has expanded the scope of its license with Ovonyx Inc. in the thin-film nonvolatile chip arena.
In 2000, STMicro of Geneva originally announced plans to collaborate with Ovonyx, based in Santa Clara. The companies planned to develop nonvolatile chips, based on Ovonyx' ovonic unified memory (OUM) technology (see Dec. 21, 2000 story ).
The expanded license agreement now permits STMicro to use OUM technology in discrete memory applications for flash replacement, as well as embedded applications with its microcontrollers, MOS logic, and other products.
The joint development program also integrates thin-film OUM memory material into STMicro's silicon wafer fabrication process, according to the companies.
OUM technology is said to offer potential benefits over existing nonvolatile memory technologies, including lower cost, faster read/write, higher endurance and improved scalability. OUM technology is an electrical version of the reversible crystalline to amorphous phase-change process that has been commercialized in popular rewritable CD and DVD optical memory disks.
OUM technology was originally announced in the late-1960s, but it has not been commercialized due to some technical problems in the materials arena. But STMicro and Ovonyx appear to be moving full speed ahead to bring the technology into production in the future. Intel Corp. is also in the R&D stage with OUM technology, it was noted.
"The market for flash and embedded nonvolatile semiconductor memory is growing rapidly, and ST is an excellent partner to work with towards commercializing OUM thin-film memory technology in a wide range of integrated products," said Tyler Lowrey, President and CEO of Ovonyx.
"The results obtained so far on the OUM development are increasing our confidence in this technology,” said Giulio Casagrande, R&D director at STMicro's Memory Products Group. We are considering OUM as a solution both in stand-alone applications with its small, scalable cell and fast write and also in embedded applications due to the low write voltage and process cost," he said.
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