Spring 1999 Newsletter

CIS Welcomes Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates

Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc. (VSEA), a leading supplier of ion implantation systems for the dynamic semiconductor equipment industry, is further demonstrating its commitment to pioneering innovative technologies through research and development by partnering with the Center for Integrated Systems (CIS). President and Chief Executive Officer of Varian, Mr. Richard Aurelio (pictured at left), and Varian Research Center Director, Susan Felch, Ph.D., will serve on the CIS Advisory Committee.

Varian moved its headquarters from Palo Alto, Calif. to Gloucester, Mass. when it spun out as an independent company in early April, 1999, but the Varian Research Center will remain local and deeply involved with Stanford and CIS.

"Forging this formal partnership with CIS strengthens a vital link between the semiconductor industry and academic research," said Felch. "This partnership enables us to participate actively with professors and graduate students working in the exciting areas of ion implantation and annealing, which dovetails Varian's research and focus."

Felch added that Varian's research data, coupled with StanfordÕs simulation models, will provide invaluable results for each participant and build on a long history of collaboration. Varian was the first company to participate in cooperative university-industry relations by commercializing two areas of invention and discovery. In association with Professor William W. Hansen in the Stanford Physics Department, Russell Varian and his brother Sigurd invented the klystron tube in 1937 (a device for producing high-power microwaves useful in many scientific and industrial applications). The second initiative was the discovery of nuclear induction, for which Professor Felix Bloch would become Stanford's first Nobel Laureate in 1952. The invention of the klystron tube marked the first successful university-industry collaboration at Stanford (and the University's most significant and sustained prewar interaction with commercial sponsors).

Since World War II, Varian has specialized in developing Stanford's research resources and has worked closely with the university by hiring research associates, students and faculty. The tradition continues, as Felch, who specializes in ion implantation and solid state physics, is a Stanford alumna.

Varian employs 1,300 people worldwide and operates manufacturing facilities in North America and Korea. Varian's equipment is used by virtually every major semiconductor manufacturer in the U.S., Europe, Japan, Taiwan and Korea. The company has an installed base of more than 2,700 systems worldwide and estimates that more than 85 percent of its systems shipped since the early 1970s are still in use.

Varian was the first US semiconductor equipment supplier to have both its customer support and manufacturing organizations certified to ISO 9000, a series of exacting standards for developing Total Quality Management.

As a newly public company, Varian is leveraging a long-standing history of technical innovation to launch the first family of 300 mm implanters. The company's pioneering track record includes: the first parallel scan medium-current implanter for 200 mm wafers, the first high-current implanter, the first electrostatic platen for medium and high-current implanters and the world's only serial process high-current implanter.

Varian will leverage its financial resources to attract and motivate top talent, as well as develop future generations of its VIISta family of 300 mm single-wafer ion implant solutions. These systems feature a common platform for high-energy, high-current and medium-current ion implanters.

Introduced two years ago, the VIISta family processes 200 mm or 300 mm wafers, reducing customer risk as they begin their ramp up of leading-edge products.

The VSEA research team: (Left to right) Ziwei Fang, Carl Herrera, Susan Felch, Matthew Goeckner, Juanita Sonico, and Chuck Van Wagoner.

Working with Dr. Felch at the Varian Research Center are two additional researchers, Matthew Goeckner, Ph.D., and Ziwei Fang, Ph.D., and three technicians, Carl Herrera, Chuck Van Wagoner and Juanita Sonico. The Varian team will work with CIS professors Robert Dutton and James Plummer, who specialize in process modeling, James Gibbons, who specializes in ultra-low-energy molecular implant modeling, and Dr. James McVittie, who specializes in characterization of charging damage.

"Varian has been a technical innovator in ion implant systems, and we will continue to develop next-generation products, in part because of strategic partnerships such as this," added Felch. "This is a powerful alliance and we're excited to embark on research projects with CIS that will build on our collaborative history."