Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test

Fab tools
The confidence level of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography continues to grow as the technology moves into production, but the EUV mask infrastructure remains a mixed picture, according to new surveys released by the eBeam Initiative.

D2S has developed new hardware and software that enables a long-awaited technology–full-chip masks using inverse lithography technology (ILT).

In a blog, Michael Stewart, an investment principal at Applied Materials’ venture capital unit, talks about the world of venture capital.

Entegris has acquired Hangzhou Anow Microfiltration, a filtration company for diverse industries including semiconductor, pharmaceutical and medical.

SEMI announced that semiconductor industry veteran Bee Bee Ng has joined SEMI as president of SEMI Southeast Asia, reporting to SEMI CFO Richard Salsman.

Chipmakers
On June 13, Third Point LLC issued a public letter to investors, suggesting that Sony should consider spinning-off and publicly listing its semiconductor business. Sony has rejected that idea.

Qualcomm has acquired the remaining interest in RF360 Holdings, a joint venture with TDK. The joint venture has produced RF front-end filters, which enable Qualcomm to deliver complete RF solutions.

United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) has announced that Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) has selected UMC as a global component for the 12th consecutive year. Launched in 1999, the DJSI were the first global indices tracking the financial performance of leading sustainability-driven companies.

Packaging
ASE Technology Holding has also been included in the 2019 Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) World and Emerging Market segments.

Zeiss has introduced the Xradia 620 Versa RepScan – a submicron-resolution, 3D non-destructive imaging solution for inspection and measurement that accelerates time to market for advanced IC packages.

Market research
North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $2.00 billion in billings worldwide in August 2019 (three-month average basis), according to SEMI. The billings figure is 1.4% lower than the final July 2019 level of $2.03 billion, and is 10.5% lower than the August 2018 billings level of $2.23 billion.

Events
Find upcoming semiconductor industry events here. Also watch out for the SEMI Strategic Materials Conference 2019. This is an event offering the latest market insights into drivers of advanced materials in the electronics supply chain. Topics include market trends, substrates, emerging materials and applications, and automotive. The event takes place on Sept. 23-25, 2019, in San Jose, Calif.