Threaders, Following is an press release from AMAT over the WSJ Interactive Edition.
Paul V.
>Applied Materials Inc.
Dow Jones Newswires -- November 18, 1998
Applied Materials CEO: Shift To Copper In Chips To Help Co.
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Applied Material Inc. (AMAT) will benefit from a semiconductor industry shift toward new technologies, according to Chief Executive James Morgan.
"There's a shortage of equipment in the emerging new technology areas and that will help us," Morgan said in an interview on CNBC Wednesday.
The use of copper in chips, as opposed to the standard aluminum, is gaining popularity and Applied Materials stands to benefit if it gains acceptance. "We really are the leader in the copper area and copper
is just getting started," Morgan said.
Applied Materials has championed technology innovations in the past, although with mixed results. The company did a lot of work with a 300 millimeter disk, but the technology has not really been embraced by
chip companies. "Everybody wants to be second in the move to 300 millimeter," Morgan said. "No one's made a big commitment to production."
Morgan said, however, that if a chip company makes the shift Applied Materials could ramp up its work in the area.
On the whole Morgan said the worst days for the chip industry are in the past. "We think the industry's bottomed out, if you assume the economy doesn't get substantially worse," he said.
-Nancy Beiles; 201-938-5393< |
