ASML Joins EUV-LLC Team

Lithographic stepper manufacturer ASM Lithography (ASML; Veldhoven, The Netherlands) has signed a contract with the Extreme Ultraviolet Limited Liability Co. (EUV-LLC) to participate in the EUV-LLC program. The EUV-LLC is a consortium to develop EUV wafer-fabrication technology. Members include the major US semiconductor companies Intel (Santa Clara, CA), Motorola (Schaumburg, IL), and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD; Sunnyvale, CA), and the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Lawrence Livermore, Sandia, and Berkeley National Laboratories.

As part of the program, ASML will work with the EUV-LLC to develop EUV lithography. The company is also researching the electron-beam technology known as SCALPEL in a separate cooperative effort with Applied Materials (Santa Clara, CA) and Lucent Technologies (Murray Hill, NJ). ASML is also working in the European program IPL with, amongst others, Infineon (Santa Clara, CA), IMS, and Leica (Deerfield, IL) on the development of ion-beam lithography.