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Technology Stocks : Applied Materials No-Politics Thread (AMAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Proud_Infidel who wrote (7049)	9/3/2003 7:06:04 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 25522

KLA-Tencor, Carl Zeiss form mask-inspection alliance Silicon Strategies 09/03/2003, 5:30 PM ET SAN JOSE, Calif. -- KLA-Tencor Inc. and Carl Zeiss Microelectronic Systems announced today (Sept. 3, 2003) that they have established a chip-equipment alliance in the photomask arena. The alliance is aimed to reduce costs and speed time to market on next-generation photomasks for the 90-nm node and below, according to KLA-Tencor of the United States and Carl Zeiss of Germany. The two companies intend to co-develop a highly automated "interlinked system" that links the various inspection equipment from KLA-Tencor and Carl Zeiss. The "interlinked system" would link KLA-Tencor's TeraScan, TeraStar, and STARlight reticle inspection systems, and Carl Zeiss SMT's AIMS fab and AIMS fab plus systems for both 248-nm and 193-nm wavelengths. This bi-directional interlink is expected to deliver a seamless solution that allows reticle defect data and images captured by KLA-Tencor's inspection systems to be utilized by Carl Zeiss SMT review and disposition tools, with full feedback to the KLA-Tencor tools. The net effect will be higher quality reticles, as well as shorter process development cycle time, without compromising inspection sensitivity review. The interlink is intended to be retrofitable, allowing customers to better leverage their existing KLA-Tencor and Carl Zeiss reticle inspection and review tools, which currently populate all of the major mask production facilities worldwide. Customers can view demonstrations of the new interlink solution beginning in October 2003 at KLA-Tencor's customer demo facility in San Jose, or at Carl Zeiss' AIMS demo facility in Jena, Germany.