Well, it took awhile, but finally there is some sort of vindication. The Micrascan tunrs out to be a bust after all. For all of the discussions on the subject, the blockbuster numbers projected in sales that never materialized, and even with Intel and IBM as the big backers of these systems in the past, it all turned out to be smoke and mirrors. The Micrascan was never a decent production worthy system in my opinion, and I was consistent in my comments that is would never gain broad market acceptance. Now that we have moved beyond the 248nm node into the 193nm node, it appears that the Micrascan is being abandoned and has not stood the test of time, other than being part of a long history of machines I knew to be technically inferior to its competitors. Even little UTEK still has a shot for the 157nm node and EUV nodes with its current offering, which has it roots in the GCA workhorse line of systems.
November 27, 2:27 AM ET - ASML Selects 300mm TWINSCAN as Single Platform at 193nm Wavelength
(BUSINESS WIRE) - ASML Holding N.V. of the Netherlands (ASML) announced that it would converge its 193nm wavelength product offering onto a single platform, the TWINSCAN™ AT1100, the industry's first high-productivity, dual-stage ArF (193nm) lithography system for 300mm wafer processing with 100nm resolution. ASML will discontinue before year-end the development and shipment of its Micrascan V product, a 193nm wavelength system acquired through the company's merger in May 2001 with the Silicon Valley Group, Inc. The company will extend TWINSCAN manufacturing competencies and certain R&D programs from the Netherlands to the Wilton, Connecticut, facility to optimize ASML's industrial base in the United States. Developed for volume production applications, the 300mm TWINSCAN AT1100 is a 193nm wavelength system with the industry's highest numerical aperture ArF lens. ASML has been the leading supplier of high numerical aperture 193nm solutions to the industry since June 2001 through its 200mm PAS 5500 Step & Scan platform. TWINSCAN features dual wafer stage technology that enables the exposure of one wafer and the alignment of the next wafer to take place in parallel, giving higher throughput and increased productivity. |
