Sematech calls meeting to clarify litho technology status
By Peter Clarke
Silicon Strategies
10/24/2003, 6:57 AM ET
AUSTIN, Texas -- International Sematech (ISMT), a consortium of major semiconductor manufacturers, is organizing a meeting set for January 2004 to discuss lithography issues and to try and help the industry reach a consensus on likely lithography solutions.
Many chipmaking companies are approaching cut-off points for their decisions on medium-term lithography strategy and it is not yet clear which of a number of potential solutions could be an affordable commercial reality in time. Contenders include immersion of 193-nm wavelength lithography, 157-nm wavelength lithography and extreme ultraviolet lithography.
ISMT said it wants to review and clarify the status of the lithography technologies, including more distant next-generation lithography proposals and take industry soundings on lithography trends. To that end it is sponsoring a Global Lithography Forum to take place January 28 and 29, 2004, in Los Angeles, California. Mike Polcari, ISMT president and chief executive officer, said he expects more than 300 people to attend.
The meeting will consist of updated presentations from different research and industrial institutes and suppliers, coordinated by "technology champions" whose reports will be followed by both question-and-answer sessions and audience surveys seeking anonymous feedback on technology readiness, and participating companies' technology insertion plans.
"The Litho Forum will provide a rare opportunity for the industry to review all the technologies, and provide vital audience feedback to the technology champions," said Polcari, in a statement. "This information will help us assess the often conflicting reports of technology readiness, and the ability of a given technology to solve emerging manufacturing issues."
The Forum will dovetail its activities with information-gathering efforts being conducted for the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS), he added.
Polcari said technology champions from across the semiconductor industry would organize oral updates on different technologies including 193 nm immersion, 157 nm, extreme ultraviolet (EUV), electron projection (EPL), optical and charged particle maskless, and nanoimprint.
The audience will be polled anonymously for their opinions on the subject technology's manufacturing readiness, and where additional emphasis might speed its development. A final "Technology Plans Survey" will ask participants to identify which technologies they plan to use in production, and which concerns should be addressed prior to manufacturing insertion. Results of the final survey will be presented at a dinner meeting on Jan. 29.
"By sponsoring the Litho Forum at the request of our member companies and others in the industry, we hope to help the industry get a clearer idea of the litho technologies most likely to enable the industry to realize the ITRS Roadmap," said Polcari in the statement. |
