Manufacturing equipment

Capres A/S is a Danish company established in 1999 on the idea of using microscopic multi-cantilever probes to measure resistivity on thin conducting and semi-conducting layers.

Capres has been working with IBM Yorktown and Qimonda (Infineon at that time) to develop a technique coupling such resistivity measurement with magnetic field to characterize MTJ stacks used in Read Head and MRAM business.

The Capres A/S CIPTech™ tool (Current In Plane Tunnelling technique) enables for a very fast non destructive characterization of Magnetic Tunnel Junctions, MRAM and Read Heads. It allows auto extraction of MR/RA without sample patterning.

Capres' web site

Tegal Corporation designs, manufactures, markets and services plasma etch and deposition systems that enable the production of IC memory and related microelectronics devices. Tegal was formed in 1989, and acquired a division from Motorola (bought in 1978). Tegal is a supplier of etch solutions to makers of advanced "non-volatile" ferroelectric (FeRAM) and magnetic (MRAM) devices.

Tegal trades in the NASDAQ (TGAL).

Magnetic Solutions is a global supplier of High Field, Magnetic Annealing Tools to semiconductor and data storage industries for magneto-electronic applications. It’s MRT Magnetic Annealing Tool Technology is used in volume production of thin film heads for data storage, and in development lines for MRAM, magnetic sensors and emerging magneto-electronic applications.

Magnetic Solutions' web site

Singulus technologies is a German company focusing on manufacturing equipment for optical discs. Singulus' products range from mastering and injection molding to replication lines.

Singulus is offering its TIMARIS machine for Thin Film read/write heads (up to 300mm wafers), used in MRAM production, and has already sold several systems (we know that Grandis and Crocus have one of those each).

Singulus trades in the german stock exchange (WKN 723 890).

Singulus' web page

Despatch Industries has been involved in the magnetic annealing industry for the last 15 years, and has provided over 100 units to the head/data storage industry. Despatch's MRAM magnetic anneal program began about 4 years ago. Despatch installed the world’s first 50-wafer fully automated system last year and that system is now producing standard MRAM devices at Freescale. Despatch has also manufactured and tested a 300mm 50-wafer thermal chamber.
Despatch, which celebrated its 100 year anniversary in 2002, mainly deals with heat processing and environmental simulation.

Despatch's web site

Canon Anelva (ANalysis ELectronics VAcuum) is a japanese company that manufactures major equipment for the fabrication of semiconductors and LCDs using vacuum technology. Anelva developed a 200- to 300-mm-wafer-compliant deposition (sputtering) equipment for MRAM, the C-7100, using their unique low-pressure plasma deposition technique.

In october 2005, Canon bought Anelva. 

Anelva's web page (english)