News Article
German Government Funds 157nm Research
Lambda Physik is to invest up to EUR5mn until 2004 in the development of 157nm laser technology for microlithography. Up to 38% of the development and research expenses for the European 157nm microlithography consortion will come from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
The consortium consists 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 2005-06 on target structures in the 50-70nm range. Lamda Physik shipped the first prototypes for the development of 157nm technology in 1999.
“In addition to the semiconductor industry, we see interesting applications for 157nm laser technology also in the micromachining and lifesciences area,” says Lambda CEO Dr Dirk Basting.