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Technology Stocks : MEMC INT'L. (WFR -NYSE) The Sleeping Giant? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: All Mtn Ski who wrote (2951)	1/22/1998 3:00:00 PM
From: All Mtn Ski	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 4697

Perhaps this is why WFR is retreating today: Isonics rolls out ultra-pure silicon with improved thermal conductivity SAN JOSE -- Isonics Corp. here has introduced an advanced silicon wafer, which the company says has improved thermal conductivity characteristics for semiconductor manufacturing. The wafer is composed of a single isotope of silicon, called Silicon-28, which Isonics said will facilitate the processing of higher density ICs with increased performance, improved chip yields, and shorter time-to-market for new designs. Isonics said tests have shown that isotopically pure Silicon-28 has greater than 50% better thermal conductivity than natural silicon. These ultra-pure wafers are produced by growing an isotopically pure Silicon-28 epitaxial layer on a standard silicon single-crystal wafer. Silicon-28 epitaxial wafers are currently available in 4, 5, 6 and 8-inch diameters with n-type or p-type doping to customer specifications in quantities sufficient for prototype runs, according to Isonics, which is discussing potential development partnerships with a number of companies. "While Silicon-28 has been shown superior in certain thermal conductivity tests, we have not yet identified the full range and magnitude of benefits that isotopically pure Silicon-28 may ultimately provide the semiconductor industry," said James E. Alexander, president and CEO of Isonics. "We anticipate that the benefits will be very application specific," Alexander added. "Semiconductors today are so complex that the benefits of our Silicon-28 cannot be analyzed in advance. Instead, they must be proven by manufacturing existing products using our new Silicon-28 wafers and then comparing the results to standard wafers. While Isonics believes current fab applications will receive substantial benefits from the wafers, but "we also expect that the properties of our improved silicon will become critically important as the industry transitions to 12-inch wafers, copper interconnects and 0.18 micron design rules," Alexander said. techweb.cmp.com Any comments? Tom