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

To: Duker who wrote (29445)	4/9/1999 9:25:00 AM
From: Jeffrey D	Respond to of 70976

More Cu stuff. Jeff Applied Rolls Out Tool For Copper Chip Making -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Story Filed: Friday, April 09, 1999 8:11 AM EST Apr 09, 1999 (Tech Web - CMP via COMTEX) -- SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Applied Materials here officially rolled out its promised electrochemical plating system, called Millennia, Thursday -- one day after rival Novellus Systems launched its second-generation tool for electroplating copper interconnects. At stake is an emerging chip-processing equipment segment that could grow from nearly nothing several years ago to over $1.5 billion in 2003, according to market researchers. Copper interconnects and low-k dielectric insulators are widely believed to be necessary for future ICs once conventional aluminum metal and silicon dioxide structures run out of steam in the next decade. Applied said its Millennia could fill interconnect lines and vias at a rate of up to 70 eight-inch (200-mm) wafers per hour with a unique closed-loop chemical management system, a proprietary low-acid electrolyte and an automated platform of dual-process cells. San Jose-based Novellus said its new Sabre-xT copper electrofill system would handle 75 wafers per hour. Both the Applied and Novellus systems could be configured to handle 300-mm wafers when those larger diameter substrates are used in volume manufacturing in the next several years. Along with the Millennia electroplating tool, Applied also introduced Thursday a new chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process for its Mirra system, which uses three platens and multiple steps to remove copper and planarize suffers in dual-damascene processes for interconnects. The new Millennia electrofill system, the copper CMP process, and previously introduced copper seed and barriers deposition tools are being bundled together by Applied as an integrated solution for next-generation interconnect. Applied said commitments had already been received for multiple Millennia systems from chip makers in the United States, Europe and Japan. These tools are expected to begin shipping in the next couple of months with full production shipments expected to start in the third quarter. Applied managers admit the company has lagged competitors in offering an electrochemical plating (ECP) system for filling interconnect lines and vias with copper metal. Others, including Novellus and copper electroplating pioneer Semitool Inc., have been shipping systems to chip makers for early production, pilot lines and process development. But Applied said it believed it was still early in the game for copper processing as chip makers wrestled with the transition from conventional aluminum interconnects to copper for higher speed, lower power and greater reliability when feature sizes shrink. Copyright (C) 1999 CMP Media Inc.