Mark LaPedus

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Mark LaPedus is Executive Editor for manufacturing at Semiconductor Engineering.

Author's Latest Posts

Manufacturing Bits: Feb. 25
By Mark LaPedus - 25 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Diamond finFETs HRL Laboratories has made new and significant progress to develop diamond finFETs. HRL, a joint R&D venture between Boeing and General Motors, has developed a new ohmic regrowth technique for diamond FETs. This in turn could pave the way towards commercial diamond FETs. Applications include spacecraft, satellites and systems with extreme temperatures. Still in R&D, diamo... » read more

2020 IC Outlook: Uncertainty
By Mark LaPedus - 24 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

After a downturn in 2019, the semiconductor and equipment industries looked promising at the start of 2020. In 2019, the downturn was primarily due to the memory markets, namely DRAM and NAND. Both DRAM and NAND saw lackluster demand and falling prices last year. At the start of 2020, though, the memory markets were beginning to recover. Unlike memory, the logic and foundry markets were s... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test
By Mark LaPedus - 21 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Fab tools The United States is mulling over new trade export restrictions for U.S. fab equipment to China, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. “Recent press reports suggest the U.S. Department of Commerce is exploring additional measures to limit Huawei's access to U.S. semiconductor capital equipment (SPE) by requiring chip manufacturing plants globally to procure license... » read more

MOCVD Vendors Eye New Apps
By Mark LaPedus - 20 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Several equipment makers are developing or ramping up new metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) systems in the market, hoping to capture the next wave of growth applications in the arena. Competition is fierce among the various MOCVD equipment suppliers in the market, namely Aixtron, AMEC and Veeco. In addition, MOCVD equipment suppliers are looking for renewed growth in 2020, but b... » read more

Demand Picks Up For 200mm
By Mark LaPedus - 20 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Demand is growing for both 200mm fab capacity and equipment, setting the stage for possible shortages in coming months. But there are also some uncertainties, if not warning signs, in the 200mm market and the entire IC industry. Trade disputes, as well as the current coronavirus outbreak in China, likely will impact the chip and equipment markets. The size of the impact and the duration rema... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Feb. 18
By Mark LaPedus - 18 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Molecular layer etch The U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has made new advances in the field of molecular layer etching or etch (MLE). MLE is related to atomic layer etch (ALE). Used in the semiconductor industry, ALE selectively removes targeted materials at the atomic scale without damaging other parts of the structure. ALE is related to atomic layer deposition... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test
By Mark LaPedus - 14 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Chipmakers and OEMs IC Insights has released its rankings of the 25 largest wafer capacity leaders in terms of monthly installed capacity in 200mm-equivalents as of December 2019. Samsung was in first place, followed by TSMC, Micron, SK Hynix, and Kioxia, formerly Toshiba Memory, according to IC Insights. Combined capacity of the top five companies represented 53% of total global wafer capa... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Feb. 10
By Mark LaPedus - 10 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Accelerating and cooling muons Using a novel particle accelerator, a group for the first time have observed a phenomenon called muon ionization cooling–an event that could give researchers a better understanding of matter and the universe. Muons are obscure sub-atomic particles. This experiment could pave the way towards the development of new and powerful muon particle accelerators. Thes... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test
By Mark LaPedus - 07 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Fab tools Citing the outbreak of the coronavirus in China, SEMI has postponed Semicon/FPD China 2020 and related events originally scheduled for March 18-20, 2020. For the same reason, SEMI will no longer host Semicon Korea 2020 in Seoul, South Korea, February 5-7, as originally scheduled. ------------------------------- Veeco has introduced the new Lumina Metal Organic Chemical Vapor De... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Feb. 4
By Mark LaPedus - 04 Feb, 2020 - Comments: 0

Non-targeted analysis Using a technology called machine learning, the Southwest Research Institute has introduced a software tool that detects known and unknown chemical components in food, air and drugs. It detects compounds in products we are exposed to every day using both machine learning and metrology techniques. A subset of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning uses advanced ... » read more

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