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Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kirk © who wrote (40132)	11/29/2000 3:27:53 PM
From: Fred Levine	Respond to of 70976

Excuse me if this was poste before... Applied Materials unveils new system But analysts say single-wafer process is late to market By Deborah Adamson, CBS.MarketWatch.com Last Update: 2:28 PM ET Nov 29, 2000 Newswatch Latest Headlines Get Alerted SANTA CLARA, Calif. (CBS.MW) -- Applied Materials on Wednesday touted a new single-wafer system for making chips that the company said could cut capital and operating costs by up to half. Applied Materials (AMAT: news, msgs) , a manufacturer of equipment that produces chips used in computers and electronic devices, took the wraps off its new Swift ion implanter. The company said the new product provides the doping accuracy and extended operating range required for medium to high-energy use. Doping is a process where semiconductor material -- mainly silicon, and of little use in pure form -- is given useful electronic properties. Applied Materials said the new system, together with its Quantum product, would address the technology and productivity demands of next generation 200- and 300-millimeter wafer processing. The system also would simplify the ion implantation process, which now requires at least three different tools. "This is an important step for them," said Mark Fitzgerald, an analyst at Banc of America Securities. Ion implantation has been a disappointing business for the company and this is a new push to increase market share, said Fred Wolf, an analyst at Adams, Harkness & Hill. The total implant system market is expected to grow to $1.4 billion in 2004, up from $649 million in 1999, according to Applied Materials, quoting figures from market researcher Dataquest. However, Applied Materials was expected to have unveiled the product six to eight months ago, Fitzgerald said. "They've been working on this product for five years," Wolf said. As for the company's claims about the new system's revolutionary features, Wolf said he could not make a determination until he has seen the specifications of the product. Fitzgerald said he would wait for the reaction from engineers before making a judgment. Shares of Applied Materials rose by 94 cents to $42. Deborah Adamson is a reporter for CBS.MarketWatc fred