Agilent Technologies 93000 Series and 4073 Parametric Testers Selected for Nanotechnology Joint Development Program

Agilent Technologies Inc. (Palo Alto, CA) today announced that the Crolles2 Alliance has purchased three Agilent 93000 Pin Scale testers and four 4073 advanced parametric testers for research, development and industrialization of CMOS process technologies.

The Alliance, which includes STMicroelectronics, Philips and Freescale Semiconductor, has agreed to a joint development program (JDP) with Agilent, focusing on the development of test software and hardware aimed at best-in-class test capabilities for nanotechnology engineering and industrial applications.

Agilent will collaborate closely with the Alliance to develop state-of-the-art engineering tools for R&D and production, focusing primarily on memory and mixed-signal device test. In exchange, the Alliance will provide access to test-related technology in both industrial and engineering environments. The Alliance's center in Crolles, France, includes a 300 mm wafer plant, currently in production at 90 nm technology. The Alliance also has a pilot line for 65 nm technology, developments in process for 45 nm, and plans for 32 nm.

To help its members propagate technology to multiple sites around the globe, the Alliance needed a test equipment manufacturer with an established global presence. The Agilent 93000 is the strategic SOC test platform for all of the alliance partners, facilitating seamless technical transfers worldwide.

The Agilent 93000 is the industry's fastest-growing scalable platform architecture for testing systems-on-chips (SOCs) and systems-in-packages (SIPs). With more than 1,100 installed systems worldwide, the Agilent 93000 is the system of choice for subcontract manufacturers, integrated device manufacturers and fabless companies. The Agilent 93000 meets the industry's demanding performance and cost challenges, whether at-speed device characterization or high-volume production. The test system provides massive multi-site capabilities, enables data rates up to 10 Gb/s and supports a full range of digital, mixed-signal and RF applications. The flexibility and performance of the Agilent 93000 provide faster time-to-market, better yields and lower overall cost-of-test.

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