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To: Kirk © who wrote (36890)	8/18/2000 6:17:24 PM
From: Mephisto	Respond to of 70976

Semiconductor Stocks Rise on Merrill Lynch Notes Semiconductor stocks rose on Friday after two Merrill Lynch analysts issued positive forecasts for companies in both the semiconductor and semiconductor capital equipment sectors. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (.SOXX.), comprised of 30 chip stocks, was up 2.63 percent, or 29.43 points, to 1140.49 in afternoon trade. Analyst Joe Osha said he raised his estimates for global revenue growth for the chip industry to 40 percent from 32 percent for 2000 and to 26 percent from 21 percent for 2001. `Improving pricing underlies our new forecasts,'' Osha wrote in a note to clients. ``Capital spending relative to forecast revenue and volume in 2000 remains at reasonable to low levels, and we expect a period of sustained pricing strength in the latter half of the year as capacity restrictions really begin to bite.'' He added, ``Names in the communications-oriented and foundry business are of particular interest to the current environment.'' He told investors to focus on names including Texas Instruments Inc. which r; STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM - news), up 3/4 to 62-5/8 in U.S. trade; and Cypress Semiconductor Corp. He also named Atmel Corp. ; and Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Inc. Osha said semiconductor stocks globally are well below their March highs and the mid-cycle correction hasended. `We would advise investors to begin buying semiconductor (stocks) more aggressively,'' he wrote. Analyst Bret Hodess wrote that growth rates for both orders and revenues in the semiconductor capital equipment industry were just a bit above his estimates for the sector, and that semiconductor sales growth is trending above the 32 percent upward revision made two months ago ``We believe that semiconductor capacity is required relative to semiconductor demand,'' he wrote in a note to clients. ``Thus, we remain comfortable that supply will continue to tighten in the normal seasonally strong fall/winter period for semiconductors, providing a catalyst for stock appreciation in the group.''

To: Kirk © who wrote (36890)	8/18/2000 7:10:05 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 70976

Sematech launches metrology initiative with tool suppliers Effort represents new R&D model for consortium, teaming with equipment firms Semiconductor Business News (08/18/00, 03:06:59 PM EDT) AUSTIN, Tex. -- International Sematech today announced a metrology and yield management tool initiative that teams the semiconductor industry consortium with equipment suppliers to tackle advanced measurement technology for chip feature sizes below 100 nanometers (0.10 micron). Sematech's Metrology/Yield Management Tool Initiative is also a new model for the consortium, which until now has officially partnered with its chip-making members in development programs while involving tool vendors as supporting participants. The new metrology initiative increases the role of tool suppliers to help define next-generation technologies. "By partnering with tool suppliers, we will accelerate advanced measurement technology down to the 100-nm node and promote development of new methods for sub-100 nm," said Rinn Cleavelin, chief operating officer of Sematech. The Austin-based consortium said its new initiative will deal with a range of metrology technologies for critical dimension (CD), control of chemical mechanical planarization (CMP), defect detection, shallow junction depth and uniformity, gate dielectric and low-k film thickness, and pattern overlay in lithography. "As new lithography technology enables the reduction of feature sizes and new materials such as low k and high k dielectrics are introduced, new methods of characterizing masks, measuring process variation and ensuring product quality must be found," Alain Diebold, senior fellow and manager of metrology coordination for the initiative. Diebold and Ronald Remke, manager of yield management, will jointly manage the metrology initiative. The Metrology/Yield Management Tool Initiative will involves several Sematech technical divisions, including the consortium's Advanced Technology Development Facility (ATDF), Front End Processes, Interconnect, and Lithography operations. Sematech said a half dozen tool providers have joined the initiative. These participants and committed tool for the initiative are: Boxer Cross Inc. of Menlo Park. Calif., with its non-contact BX-10 source/drain and ultra shallow junction measurement system; Hitachi Ltd. of Japan with a S9300 CD SEM and a SR-7300 defect tool; KLA-Tencor Corp. of San Jose with a Quantox system for non-contact electrical testing of gate dielectrics, especially high-k materials; Philips Electronics N.V. of the Netherlands with an Impulse 300 tool for measuring metal film thickness; Therma-Wave Inc. of Fremont, Calif., with an Opti-Probe 5240D system for measurement of gate dielectric, low-k and high-k film thickness and refractive index; Veeco Instruments Inc. of Plainview, N.Y., with its Dimension Vx Atomic Force Profiler for measuring the atomic surface texture of integrated circuit wafers. Sematech said it is working with other suppliers to acquire metrology and yield management tools for characterizing photomasks and measuring all the critical aspects of wafer processing. In the program, tool suppliers are able to test their equipment on new high-k and porous low-k materials and new processes such as damascene. Sematech has also created a metrology council to act as a forum for consensus development of in-line measurement systems for wafer fabs.