Oxford licenses ASM deposition technology
ASM International has granted a license that gives UK-based equipment manufacturer Oxford Instruments Plasma Technology (OIPT) access to its atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology.
The agreement covers more than 280 issued and published patents, and will allow OIPT to develop new products and processes based on the technologies detailed in ASM's intellectual property portfolio.
ALD can be used to deposit extremely thin films and can be used to manufacture micromechanical devices as well as having a variety of possible applications in semiconductor processing.
Germany-based MOCVD equipment vendor Aixtron made a similar move into ALD technology last year with the acquisition of the US company Genus (see related story).
Market analyst company VLSI Research estimates the current market for ALD equipment to be worth around $140 million, according to figures quoted by ASM and OIPT. This figure is set to increase quickly to reach $700 million by the end of the decade, says the analyst.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed by either company.
