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Technology Stocks : Ultratech Stepper -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Andrew Vance who wrote (3528)	8/10/2001 12:53:39 AM
From: Cary Salsberg	Respond to of 3696

RE: "...backed away from the advanced processing of critical layers, but it still is a leading edge provider..." I don't think it is profitable to haggle about the meaning of "leading edge." I think you have stated a definition, "the advanced processing of critical layers," very succinctly. There are two semi-equip companies I will not buy, UTEK and SFAM. If you think UTEK is a good vehicle, go ahead, buy it. I think there are many readers who are far less sophisticated than you are and you are doing them a disservice by using phrases such as "leading edge solutions." UTEK's "leading edge solutions" are clever applications of "trailing edge technology." UTEK's 157nm system is an R &D system and UTEK has never pretended that it will become a production system. It is obviously not "trailing edge" technology. UTEK originated the mix-and-match strategy and did well for a while. Their success was limited by the move to smaller linewidths and their competitors desire to mix-and-match with all of their own tools.

To: Andrew Vance who wrote (3528)	8/10/2001 8:12:05 AM
From: Katherine Derbyshire	Respond to of 3696

>>People were running 0.50u devices on 1X steppers at half the equipment cost and 1/3 the reticle costs than their 5X counterparts.<< Could you explain this in a bit more detail? The feature sizes on a 5X mask are 5X larger than on a 1X mask. So how does the 1X mask actually end up being cheaper? >>we will also be very curious to see how frantic the competition will become if the 157nm system takes off and UTEK decides to invade the big three stepper cartel, and go into full production on this advanced "trailing edge" system. << That would be interesting. FWIW, though, Art Z. has explicitly denied that Ultratech is working on a full-field 157 nm stepper. Katherine