Full Description

Applied Materials, Inc. (Applied), incorporated in 1967, provides Nanomanufacturing Technology solutions for the global semiconductor, flat panel display, solar and related industries, with a portfolio of equipment, service and software products. The Company’s customers include manufacturers of semiconductor wafers and chips, flat panel liquid crystal displays (LCDs), solar photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules, and other electronic devices. It operates in four segments: Silicon, Applied Global Services, Display, and Energy and Environmental Solutions. On January 31, 2008, Applied acquired Baccini S.p.A. (Baccini), a supplier of automated metallization and test systems for crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar PV cells.

Silicon

Applied’s Silicon Systems Group (SSG), reported under its Silicon segment, develops, manufactures and sells a range of manufacturing equipment used to fabricate semiconductor chips, also referred to as integrated circuits (ICs). Most chips are built on a silicon wafer base and include a variety of circuit components, such as transistors and other devices, that are connected by multiple layers of wiring (interconnects). It offers systems that perform primary processes used in chip fabrication, including atomic layer deposition (ALD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), etch, rapid thermal processing (RTP), chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) and wafer metrology and inspection, as well as systems that etch, clean, measure and inspect circuit patterns on masks used in the photolithography process. The Company’s semiconductor manufacturing systems are used by both integrated device manufacturers and foundries to build memory, logic and other types of chips.

Applied is a supplier of systems for manufacturing copper-based chips, including equipment for depositing, etching and planarizing copper interconnect layers. Most of the Company’s semiconductor equipment products are single-wafer systems with multiple process chambers attached to a base platform. This enables each wafer to be processed separately in its own environment, allowing process control, while the system’s multiple chambers enable simultaneous productivity manufacturing. It sells most of its single-wafer, multi-chamber systems on four basic platforms: Centura, Endura, Producer and Vantage. These platforms support ALD, CVD, PVD, etch and RTP technologies.

Deposition is a fundamental step in fabricating a chip. During deposition, layers of dielectric (an insulator), barrier, or electrically conductive (typically metal) films are deposited or grown on a wafer. Applied provides equipment to perform three types of deposition: ALD, CVD and PVD. In addition, its RTP systems can be used to perform certain types of dielectric deposition.

ALD is a technology in which atoms are deposited one layer at a time to build chip structures. This technology enables customers to fabricate thin films of either conducting or insulating material with coverage in sub-nanometer sized structures. The Applied Centura iSprint Tungsten system (iSprint) combines an ALD chamber, which deposits a tungsten nucleation film, with a CVD tungsten bulk fill process in one system. The iSprint is used to form contact structures that connect the transistors to the wiring areas of the chip.

CVD is used by customers to deposit dielectric and metal films on a wafer. The CVD products and technologies offered by the Company include: The Applied Producer CVD platform, Low k Dielectric Films, Lithography-Enabling Solutions, Gap Fill Films and Strain Engineering Solutions, among others.

PVD is a physical process in which atoms of a gas, such as argon, are accelerated toward a metal target. The metal atoms chip off, or sputter away, and are then deposited on the wafer. Applied Endura PVD system offers a range of deposition processes, including aluminum, aluminum alloys, cobalt, titanium/titanium nitride, tantalum/tantalum nitride, tungsten/tungsten nitride, nickel, vanadium and copper. The Applied Endura CuBS (copper barrier/seed) PVD system is used by customers for fabricating copper-based chips. Using PVD technology, the system deposits a tantalum-based barrier film that prevents copper material from entering other areas of the device and then a copper seed layer that primes the structure for the subsequent deposition of bulk copper. This system also features Activ Pre-clean technology to provide clean film interfaces while preserving the k-value integrity of the structure.

Etching is used many times throughout the integrated circuit manufacturing process to selectively remove material from the surface of a wafer. Before etching begins, the wafer is coated with a light-sensitive film, called photoresist. A photolithography process then projects the circuit pattern onto the wafer. Etching removes material only from areas dictated by the photoresist pattern. The Company offers a range of systems for etching dielectric, metal and silicon films, which include Applied Centura eMax system, Applied Centura Enabler Etch system and Applied Centura Carina system, among others.

RTP is used for modifying the properties of deposited films. The Applied Centura RadiancePlus and Applied Vantage RadOx RTP systems feature RTP technology with differing platform designs. The CMP process removes material from a wafer to create a flat (planarized) surface. This process allows subsequent photolithography patterning steps to occur with accuracy and enables film layers to build with minimal height variations. The 300mm Applied Reflexion LK system has features, such as integrated cleaning, film measurement and process control capabilities.

Applied offers several products for measuring features and inspecting defects on the wafer during various stages of the fabrication process. These systems enable customers to characterize and control critical dimension (CD) and defect issues, especially at advanced generation technology nodes. Masks are used by photolithography systems to transfer microscopic circuit designs onto wafers. Applied provides systems for etching, cleaning and inspecting masks.

Applied Global Services

The Applied Global Services segment encompasses products and services designed to improve the performance and productivity, and reduce the environmental impact, of the fab operations of semiconductor, LCD and solar PV manufacturers. The services and products offered by the Company include Fab Services, Mature Technology Services, Automation Systems and Abatement Systems.

The Company offers a portfolio of fab-wide operations services to maintain and optimize customers’ fabrication facilities. In 2008, the Company introduced its SunFab Performance Service program, a support solution for Applied’s SunFab Thin Film Line for producing large-size solar PV panels. It offers a range of products and services to extend the productive life of 200 millimeter semiconductor fabs, including new and remanufactured 200 millimeter equipment, system enhancements and fab transition services.

Applied offers automated factory-level and tool-level control software systems for semiconductor, LCD and solar cell manufacturing facilities. These enterprise solutions include manufacturing execution systems (MES) to automate the production of wafers and LCD and solar substrates, advanced process control systems, and scheduling and materials handling control systems. The Company’s family of Metron abatement systems is a line of environmental solutions for the semiconductor, solar and display industries. These systems include a range of point-of-use scrubbing tools, including wet, dry, thermal and integrated technologies for abatement of exhaust gases.

Display

The Display segment, designs, manufactures and sells equipment to fabricate thin film transistor LCDs for televisions, computer displays and other electronic applications. Applied supplies a range of systems that process and test different glass substrate sizes. For fabricating the transistor layer of these panels, the Company offers a line of plasma-enhanced CVD (PECVD) systems that use multi-chamber platform architecture to deposit dielectric and semiconducting films. It also offers a line of electron beam test (EBT) systems for testing substrates during production for defective pixels and other imperfections.

Energy and Environmental Solutions

The Energy and Environmental Solutions segment includes manufacturing solutions for the generation and conservation of energy. The Company offers manufacturing solutions for both wafer-based c-Si and glass-based thin film applications. For thin film applications, it developed the Applied SunFab Thin Film Line, which is a production line for manufacturing thin film silicon solar modules using 5.7 square meter (m2) glass substrates. Other products in the segment include ATON, roll-to-roll and vacuum Web coating systems.