Japan to take on KLA-Tencor in mask inspection
Mark LaPedus
Page 1 of 2
EE Times
(04/01/2005 12:48 PM EST)
SAN JOSE, Calif. — For years, chip and IC-equipment hopefuls in Europe, Japan and the U.S. have tried but failed to develop a viable photomask defect inspection tool to break KLA-Tencor Corp.'s stranglehold in the marketplace.
Even mighty Applied Materials Inc. (Santa Clara, Calif.) has stumbled in photomask defect inspection, which is fast becoming the most expensive technology for leading-edge mask production, surpassing electron-beam reticle-writers in the arena, according to analysts. The technology has become more expensive as it moves towards what some call "smart inspection" for detecting a new class of killer defects.
But now, KLA-Tencor (San Jose) — the dominate player with 80-to-90 percent market share — faces its biggest threat from Japan, which is tired of relying exclusively on the U.S.-based company's tools. At next month's Photomask Japan 2005 conference, a group led by Japanese chip-equipment startup Advanced Mask Inspection Inc. (AMI) is expected to present the results of its initial alpha tool for photomask defect inspection applications.
With funding from the Japanese government, AMI — a joint venture between NEC Corp. and Toshiba Corp. — has been developing what it calls a novel 198.5-nm wavelength mask inspection system for the 65-nm node and perhaps beyond.
AMI is still in the R&D stage, but its tool "has a possibility to compete at the 65-nm node and beyond," said D. H. Chung, a researcher at Semiconductor Leading Edge Technologies Inc. (Selete), a Japanese chip-making consortium that has a hand in developing the next-generation mask defect inspection tool.
At the Photomask Japan 2005 event, which runs from April 13-15, AMI, Toppan, Toshiba, and Selete are expected to give a paper entitled, "Mask defect specifications and performances of novel 198.5-nm wavelength mask inspection system for the 65-nm node."
Scrambling for a tool
Japan is scrambling to field a fully-functional inspection tool for good reason: the nation's mask makers do not want to rely solely on KLA-Tencor for these tools, according to analysts.
And for years, photomask makers have blamed the rising costs of masks on the sluggish write times for the lowly electron-beam reticle-writing tool. While the e-beam remains a costly bottleneck, photomask inspection has become a major issue for all mask makers.
Photomask inspection has surpassed the e-beam as the most expensive tool in leading-edge mask shops in terms of overall cost-of-ownership, said Marshall Turner, chairman and chief executive of DuPont Photomasks Inc. (Round Rock, Texas).
The surprising cost-of-ownership transition occurred at the 90-nm node, which presents some new headaches for mask makers. "At this point, inspection is the challenge and people tend to charge for it," Turner said. The executive from the photomask provider did not identify the inspection vendor by name, but observers believe he was referring to KLA-Tencor.
With a near monopoly in the market, KLA-Tencor charges a premium for its tools for what is said to be the best technology in the business. The e-beam, which has traditionally been the most expensive tool in the mask shop, runs $10-to-$20 million per unit.
In comparison, KLA-Tencor's photomask inspection tools cost more than $10 million each. Some, however, believe that a fully-loaded mask defect inspection tool from the company could go as high as $30-to-$35 million — per unit.
Officials from KLA-Tencor declined to be interviewed for this article. But Japan's efforts are expected to upset KLA-Tencor, which in the past said that it's unfair for the U.S. company to compete against foreign consortia (see Dec. 12, 2004 story).
Soaring costs
Needless to say, mask and tool costs are soaring. The cost of a first-generation "mask set" is projected to jump from $1.5 million for the 90-nm node, to $3 million for the 65-nm node, and $6 million for the 45-nm node, according to some experts.
Overall tool costs for a mask shop are projected to jump from $28 million for the 180-nm node, to $39 million for the 130-nm node, to $58 million for the 90-nm node, Turner said. "At 65-nm, it will be in excess of that," he said. (The figures represent the total costs of the tools only and not the building.)
The escalating cost of photomask production is causing mask makers to "share the cost of ownership," he said. For example, DuPont Photomasks is involved with Advanced Technology Mask Center GbH & Co. KG (AMTC). AMTC is a joint photomask R&D venture between Infineon Technologies AG, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and DuPont Photomasks in Dresden, Germany.
It was noted that diverse Japanese giant Toppan Printing Co. Ltd. has agreed to buy DuPont Photomasks in a deal valued at approximately $650 million (see Oct. 8, 2004 story). |
