Where Industry and Security Intersect
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WASHINGTON -- The Commerce Department, in cooperation with the Energy and Defense Departments, and the White House National Economic Council, today hosted the first industry/government open forum to discuss a possible consortium of U.S. companies to work on next-generation stepper lithography research, development and manufacturing.
"From an economic and national security perspective, the transition to the next generation of lithography equipment offers the United States an opportunity to regain leadership in international markets. Through these industry discussions, the U.S. Government hopes to assist all segments of the industry to create a common infrastructure capable of supporting commercialization of any or all of these emerging lithography technologies," said William Reinsch, under secretary for Export Administration.
The creation of a new U.S. consortium could expand the opportunities for a wider range of U.S. industries to become involved in Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) technology, a technique to allow semiconductor manufacturers to etch circuit lines smaller than 0.1 micron wide. The industry has just begun producing microprocessors using 0.25-micron technology. The smaller dimensions could result in microprocessors 100 times more powerful and memory chips capable of storing 1,000 times more information than is currently possible. Industry experts estimate that the world market for EUV technology could reach $18-25 billion by 2012.
Research on the technology is already underway through an Intel-led consortium, EUV Limited Liability Company (EUV LLC), and three Department of Energy laboratories. The consortium announced a $250 million Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA). The EUV LLC has expressed a willingness to work with all U.S. manufacturers wishing to participate in the development of EUV technology.
In April of 2002 the Bureau of Export Administration (BXA) changed its name to the Bureau of Industry and Security(BIS). For historical purposes we have not changed the references to BXA in the legacy documents found in the Archived Press and Public Information.