Goettingen, Germany—Lambda Physik AG, a leading supplier of pulsed UV lasers, will invest up to EUR 5 million until 2004 in the development of 157nm laser technology for the production of a new generation of even more powerful microchips. Up to 38 percent of the development and research expense required for this project will be funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
The BMBF has approved the funding of the European 157nm microlithography consortium consisting of industry partners such as ASML, Carl Zeiss, Jenoptik, Schott and Infineon as well as European universities and research institutions. This initiative is part of the European Medea+ project (FLUOR) on the development of optical lithography.
The 157nm technology is expected to be used for the production of microchips from 2005/2006 and targets structures in the 50-70nm range. Lambda Physik shipped the first prototypes for the development of 157nm technology in 1999.
For further information, visit www.lambdaphysik.com.