Another Coppermine Shortage?

Electronic News, April 17, 2000

Go ahead, just try and find one of Intel Corp.as Pentium III Coppermine processors with a clock speed of 700MHz or faster. It seems that getting ample supplies of Intelas fastest parts continues to be a pretty tough order, and by some accounts, Intel is telling its PC OEM customers to brace for a severe shortage that could last until June. Some reports say the problem may have something to do with the transition to flip-chip packaging. Intel, citing a quiet period, said by law it could make no comment. A spokesman hinted the issue may be addressed when the company reports its first-quarter earnings on Tuesday. However, according to one source familiar with the shortage, the problem is not rooted in the Coppermine manufacturing process, as slower parts made on that process are still readily available. But any continued shortages can only work to benefit Intel rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD).aIf someone wants a 700MHz or 800MHz processor,a? said the source, atheyare going to AMD.a?

Passive Dilemma

Whatas the biggest challenge for makers of capacitors and other passive components? Catching up with red-hot demand, particularly from cellular and other communications customers, according to Dick Rosen, AVX Corp. chairman and chief executive officer, who discussed a atruly phenomenal quartera? in a conference call last week. aIt couldnat be a more positive time,a? he said. aCommunications business is beyond imagination. Major and minor communications producers are talking about doubling output, but there are not enough components. I donat see how it is possible for us to catch up in the next 12 months. Most component makers are trying to expand capacity, but canat as quickly as demand is growing.a?

Despite Earnings Boom, Stocks Plummet

Industry experts are in the dark about the recent technology stock bloodbathaand it isnat surprising. aWe donat know whatas going on,a? admitted one industry watcher at a major investment house. The truth is, industry companies are doing better than ever. Last week Sun Microsystems Inc. and Gateway Inc. reported their strongest quarterly gains in years. Sun posted quarterly revenues of $4 billion, up 35 percent from the year-ago quarter; earnings rose 49 percent to $436.2 million (excluding special items). Gatewayas quarterly sales rose 11 percent to $2.3 billion and its net income climbed 37 percent to $136 million. At midday Friday, shares of Nasdaq-listed Sun were trading in the low $80s, down from $100-plus range at the end of March. New York Stock Exchange-listed Gateway shares hung on for dear life at $54, down from a recent high in the low $60s. The two companies werenat alone. Nasdaq Friday continued its plunge, losing another 355.5 points. The Dow Jones followed suit, off another 617.8.

Samsungas 0.10-Micron Lithography Claim

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. late last week said it has developed a new photoresist technology for 193-nanometer argon fluoride (ArF) lithography at 0.10 micron and below. While the manufacturing technology and tools for ArF have been developed, the Korean memory maker claims this is the first technology able to satisfy requirements for high definition and etching resistance at the same time. The company said its technology betters the Post Exposure Delay properties that alter circuit patterns when manufacturing deep-submicron ICs. ArF is a light source for forming the minute circuits needed to commercialize high-density memories. Samsung said its new ArF photoresist technology will jumpstart the production of ArF laser tools to be used in production of such memory devices. Samsung claims it is the first to crack the 0.10-micron barrier and expects its technology will enable devices with 1Gbit of memory or more to reach the market sooner. Samsung said it has applied for patents covering its technology in nine countries, including the United States, Japan, and Taiwan. Over the next decade, the company said it expects to receive about $6 million in royalties related to the new technology.