SEMATECH
Encyclopedia
Purpose
SEMATECH a not-for-profit consortiumConsortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
, performs research and development to advance chip manufacturing. SEMATECH has broad engagement with various sectors of the R&D community, including chipmakers, equipment and material suppliers, universities, research institutes, and government partners. The group is funded by member dues.
History
SEMATECH was conceived in 1986, formed in 1987, and began operating in 1988 as a partnership between the United States government and 14 U.S.-based semiconductor manufacturers to solve common manufacturing problems and regain competitiveness for the U.S. semiconductor industrySemiconductor industry
The semiconductor industry is the aggregate collection of companies engaged in the design and fabrication of semiconductor devices. It formed around 1960, once the fabrication of semiconductors became a viable business...
that had been surpassed by Japanese industry in the mid-1980s. SEMATECH was funded over 5 years by public subsidies coming from the U.S. Department of Defense via the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for a total of $500 million.
Following a determination by SEMATECH's Board of Directors to eliminate matching funds from the U.S. government after 1996, the organization's focus shifted from the U.S. semiconductor industry to the larger international semiconductor industry, abandoning the initial U.S. government-initiative. Its consortia members represent about half of the worldwide chip market.
SEMATECH currently has one subsidiary the International SEMATECH Manufacturing Initiative (ISMI), established in 2004.
ISMI
ISMI, a wholly owned subsidiary of SEMATECH, performs activities focused on increasing manufacturing productivity by providing solutions to manufacturing infrastructure, methods, standards, and productivity improvement challenges.In 1996 ISMI established the 300mm Initiative (I300I) to qualify equipment and help set standards required for the transition to 300mm wafers. ISMI is playing a similar role and currently building the infrastructure for the transition to 450 mm wafer, the next-generation wafer size.
Technology Focuses
SEMATECH conducts research on the technical challenges and costs associated with developing new materials, processes, and equipment for semiconductor manufacturing. Advanced technology programs focus on immersionImmersion lithography
Immersion lithography is a photolithography resolution enhancement technique for manufacturing integrated circuits that replaces the usual air gap between the final lens and the wafer surface with a liquid medium that has a refractive index greater than one. The resolution is increased by a factor...
and EUV lithography
Extreme ultraviolet lithography
Extreme ultraviolet lithography is a next-generation lithography technology using an extreme ultraviolet wavelength, currently expected to be 13.5 nm.-EUVL light source:...
, low-k
Low-K
In semiconductor manufacturing, a low-κ dielectric is a material with a small dielectric constant relative to silicon dioxide. Although the proper symbol for the dielectric constant is the Greek letter κ , in conversation such materials are referred to as being "low-k" rather than "low-κ"...
materials and 3D architecture, and high-k materials and next-generation transistors.
College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE)
In January 2003 SEMATECH and the University at AlbanyUniversity at Albany, SUNY
The State University of New York at Albany, also known as University at Albany, State University of New York, SUNY Albany or simply UAlbany, is a public university located in Albany, Guilderland, and East Greenbush, New York, United States; is the senior campus of the State University of New York ...
– State University of New York
State University of New York
The State University of New York, abbreviated SUNY , is a system of public institutions of higher education in New York, United States. It is the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States, with a total enrollment of 465,000 students, plus...
– established a major partnership to commercialize advanced semiconductor, nanotechnology and other emerging technologies.
Through its government-university-industry partnership with the State of New York and the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University at Albany, SEMATECH is conducting programs in several technical areas including lithography, 3D interconnects
Three-dimensional integrated circuit
In electronics, a three-dimensional integrated circuit is a chip in which two or more layers of active electronic components are integrated both vertically and horizontally into a single circuit...
, and metrology
Metrology
Metrology is the science of measurement. Metrology includes all theoretical and practical aspects of measurement. The word comes from Greek μέτρον , "measure" + "λόγος" , amongst others meaning "speech, oration, discourse, quote, study, calculation, reason"...
at CNSE’s Albany NanoTech Complex.
In 2010, SEMATECH expanded its cooperation with CNSE with the announcement that the ISMI would relocate its headquarters and operations to CNSE’s Albany NanoTech Complex beginning in January 2011.
With over $6.5 billion in high-tech investments, CNSE’s 800000 square feet (74,322.4 m²) Albany NanoTech Complex features the only fully integrated, 300mm wafer, computer chip pilot prototyping and demonstration line within 80000 square feet (7,432.2 m²) of Class 1 capable cleanrooms.
Location
SEMATECH has access to laboratories and development fabs in Albany, New York and Austin TexasAustin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. Its headquarters is located at CNSE in Albany, NY.