Completing a $200 million expansion, Philips Semiconductors, Eindhoven, The Netherlands, has added a new semiconductor manufacturing line to its Albuquerque, N.M., facility. This should help the company meet the growing demand for communications chips, like those used in cell phones and pagers. The new line, which has begun operation, will produce 8-in. wafers in 0.25-µm technology using the company's QUBiC biCMOS process.
Until now, the installation has relied on a 6-in. wafer line that fabricates 260,000 wafers per year. With a capacity of 50,000 wafers per year, the new line significantly boosts the facility's manufacturing strength. Philips expects to operate the new line without adding personnel to its approximately 900-person facility, relying instead on improved efficiency and higher levels of automation.