STMicroelectronics, STATS ChipPAC and Infineon to Set New Milestone in Establishing Wafer-Level-Packaging Industry Standard
August 07 2008 - 6:30AM
PR Newswire (US)
Leading semiconductor makers team up with advanced packaging
provider to jointly develop next-generation of eWLB wafer-level
packaging technology GENEVA, SINGAPORE and NEUBIBERG, Germany, Aug.
7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM), STATS
ChipPAC (SGX-ST: STATSChP), and Infineon Technologies AG (FSE;
NYSE: IFX) today announced that they have signed an agreement to
jointly develop the next-generation of embedded Wafer-Level Ball
Grid Array (eWLB) technology, based on Infineon's first-generation
technology, for use in manufacturing future-generation
semiconductor packages. ST and Infineon, two of the world's leading
semiconductor makers, have joined forces with STATS ChipPAC, a
leader in advanced three dimensional (3D) packaging solutions, to
fully exploit the potential of Infineon's existing eWLB packaging
technology, which has been licensed by Infineon to ST and STATS
ChipPAC. The new R&D effort, for which the resulting IP will be
owned by the three companies, will focus on using both sides of a
reconstituted wafer to provide solutions for semiconductor devices
with a higher integration level and a greater number of contact
elements. The eWLB technology uses a combination of traditional
'front-end' and 'back-end' semiconductor manufacturing techniques
with parallel processing of all the chips on the wafer, leading to
reduced manufacturing costs. This together with the increased level
of integration of the silicon's overall protective package, in
addition to a dramatically higher number of external contacts,
means the technology can provide significant cost and size benefits
for makers of cutting-edge wireless and consumer products. ST's
decision to work with Infineon to jointly develop and use this
innovative technology, with its greater integration level of
package size, marks an important milestone for eWLB on its way to
becoming an industry standard for cost-efficient and highly
integrated wafer-level packages. ST plans to use the technology in
several products of its ST-NXP Wireless joint venture and in other
application markets, with first samples expected by the end of 2008
and production by early 2010. "The eWLB technology is an excellent
complement for our next-generation leading-edge products,
especially in wireless applications," stated Carlo Cognetti,
Director, Advanced Packaging Technology, STMicroelectronics. "The
eWLB technology sets new milestones in innovation, cost
competitiveness and dimensions and we believe that, together with
Infineon, we will pave the way to a new powerful package technology
platform." "We are pleased that ST has selected our trend-setting
eWLB technology for its IC packaging and see this partnership as a
great recognition for the excellence of our technology," stated Wah
Teng Gan, Vice President of Assembly & Test at Infineon Asia
Pacific. "With ST as a new partner, and furthermore STATS ChipPAC
as a well-known leader in 3D packaging solutions acknowledging our
technology, we see a shift in the packaging industry towards the
energy efficient and high-performance eWLB technology." "We are
very pleased that Infineon and ST have selected STATS ChipPAC as a
joint development partner to develop the next generation of eWLB
technology and to manufacture products on both generations of eWLB
technology," said Dr. Han Byung Joon, Executive Vice President and
Chief Technology Officer, STATS ChipPAC. "The depth of technical
expertise at Infineon and ST, combined with the knowledge we have
on driving integration technology and flexibility at the silicon
level, are essential to delivering this breakthrough technology."
About eWLB eWLB is a revolutionary packaging technology, introduced
by Infineon in fall 2007. It sets the benchmark in integration
level and efficiency and paves the way to providing the industry
and end consumers with a new generation of energy-efficient,
high-performing mobile devices. With these new packaging processes
the benefits of Wafer-Level Ball Grid Array (WLB) technology --
namely, cost-optimized production and enhanced performance features
-- can be extended: All operations are performed at wafer level, as
with WLBs, signifying concurrent processing of all the chips on the
wafer in one step. The trend-setting package technology sets the
benchmark in integration level and efficiency, namely a 30-percent
reduction of dimension compared to conventional lead-frame laminate
packages and an almost infinite number of contact elements. About
Infineon Infineon Technologies AG, Neubiberg, Germany, offers
semiconductor and system solutions addressing three central
challenges to modern society: energy efficiency, communications,
and security. In the 2007 fiscal year (ending September), the
company reported sales of Euro 7.7 billion (including Qimonda sales
of Euro 3.6 billion) with approximately 43,000 employees worldwide
(including approximately 13,500 Qimonda employees). With a global
presence, Infineon operates through its subsidiaries in the U.S.
from Milpitas, CA, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore, and
in Japan from Tokyo. Infineon is listed on the Frankfurt Stock
Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: IFX).
Further information is available at http://www.infineon.com/. This
news release is available online at http://www.infineon.com/press/
About STATS ChipPAC Ltd. STATS ChipPAC Ltd. is a leading service
provider of semiconductor packaging design, assembly, test and
distribution solutions in diverse end market applications including
communications, digital consumer and computing. With global
headquarters in Singapore, STATS ChipPAC has design, research and
development, manufacturing or customer support offices in 10
different countries. STATS ChipPAC is listed on the Singapore
Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST). Further information
is available at http://www.statschippac.com/. Information contained
in this website does not constitute a part of this release. STATS
ChipPAC Ltd - Forward-looking Statements Certain statements in this
release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results
to differ materially from those described in this release. Factors
that could cause actual results to differ include, but are not
limited to, general business and economic conditions and the state
of the semiconductor industry; level of competition; demand for
end-use applications products such as communications equipment and
personal computers; decisions by customers to discontinue
outsourcing of test and packaging services; our reliance on a small
group of principal customers; our continued success in
technological innovations; pricing pressures, including declines in
average selling prices; availability of financing; prevailing
market conditions; our ability to meet the applicable requirements
for the termination of registration under the Exchange Act; our
ability to meet specific conditions imposed for the continued
listing or delisting of our ordinary shares on the Singapore
Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST); our substantial level
of indebtedness; potential impairment charges; delays in acquiring
or installing new equipment; adverse tax and other financial
consequences if the South Korean taxing authorities do not agree
with our interpretation of the applicable tax laws; our ability to
develop and protect our intellectual property; rescheduling or
canceling of customer orders; changes in our product mix;
intellectual property rights disputes and litigation; our capacity
utilization; limitations imposed by our financing arrangements
which may limit our ability to maintain and grow our business;
changes in customer order patterns; shortages in supply of key
components; disruption of our operations; loss of key management or
other personnel; defects or malfunctions in our testing equipment
or packages; changes in environmental laws and regulations;
exchange rate fluctuations; regulatory approvals for further
investments in our subsidiaries; majority ownership by Temasek
Holdings (Private) Limited "Temasek" that may result in conflicting
interests with Temasek and our affiliates; unsuccessful
acquisitions and investments in other companies and businesses;
labor union problems in South Korea; uncertainties of conducting
business in China and other countries in Asia; natural calamities
and disasters, including outbreaks of epidemics and communicable
diseases; and other risks described from time to time in the
Company's SEC filings, including its annual report on Form 20-F
dated March 7, 2008. You should not unduly rely on such statements.
We do not intend, and do not assume any obligation, to update any
forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or
circumstances. About STMicroelectronics STMicroelectronics is a
global leader in developing and delivering semiconductor solutions
across the spectrum of microelectronics applications. An unrivalled
combination of silicon and system expertise, manufacturing
strength, Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio and strategic
partners positions the Company at the forefront of System-on-Chip
(SoC) technology and its products play a key role in enabling
today's convergence markets. The Company's shares are traded on the
New York Stock Exchange, on Euronext Paris and on the Milan Stock
Exchange. In 2007, the Company's net revenues were $10 billion.
Further information on ST can be found at http://www.st.com/.
DATASOURCE: STMicroelectronics CONTACT: Tham Kah Locke, STATS
ChipPAC Investor Relations, +(65) 6824 7788, , or Lisa Lavin, STATS
ChipPAC Media Relations, +1-208-939-3104, ; or Christoph von
Schierstadt, Infineon Technologies AG, Media Relations, C MR, +49
(089) 234-22984, fax, +49 (089) 234-9551420, mobile, +49 160
96901486, ; or Michael Markowitz, STMicroelectronics, Director of
Technical Media Relations, +1-212-821-8959, Web site:
http://www.st.com/ http://www.infineon.com/
http://www.statschippac.com/
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