Nanometrics announces order for complete CD metrology solution from leading Japanese semicon company

MILPITAS, USA: Nanometrics Imc., a leading provider of advanced process control metrology systems, announced that a major semiconductor company in Japan has ordered a complete suite of Nanometrics optical critical dimension (OCD) products in support of capacity expansion for devices at the most advanced process nodes.

The order includes the Lynx cluster metrology platform, IMPULSE systems for in-line OCD control and Nanometrics’ proprietary NanoCD Suite.

“This competitive win is further evidence of the industry-leading performance of our products, the growing strength of our customer relationships, and the increasing importance of OCD technologies for advanced process control applications,” commented Tim Stultz, president and chief executive officer of Nanometrics. “We are working closely with this customer in cooperative development of their technology roadmap, and expect further expansion of this relationship in 2011.”

“Our IMPULSE modules, when combined with our Lynx platform and NanoCD capabilities, enable the lowest cost of ownership for in-line critical dimension and thin film metrology,” commented David Doyle, vice president of the Silicon Solutions Business Unit at Nanometrics.

“Through this selection of our comprehensive OCD metrology solution, including our innovative hardware platforms, proprietary data modeling and analysis software, and continued applications support, Nanometrics becomes a partner with our customer in helping to accelerate product development, increase yields and reduce manufacturing costs.”

The IMPULSE is a leading solution for thin film and OCD metrology when qualified as an integrated module on OEM systems or when configured with Nanometrics’ Lynx cluster metrology platform.

IMPULSE systems are deployed for applications in front-end-of-line semiconductor device manufacturing processes for applications including lithography, etch, chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) and thin film deposition, providing in-line process control metrology for device geometries from 65nm down to the 2x node.