ASML Introduces Industry's First Wide-Field, 193 nm Step & Scan System Enabling Next Step On the SIA Technology Roadmap.

VELDHOVEN, The Netherlands--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 10, 1998--

New PAS 5500/900, Developed by ASML with Key Contributions by Carl Zeiss, to be Installed at IMEC in Q1 99

Building upon the success of its PAS 5500 series of Step & Scan lithography tools, ASML (ASM Lithography) has unveiled the semiconductor industry's first wide-field, 193 nm Step & Scan system, the PAS 5500/900.

On target for developing next-generation processes for linewidths from 150 nm down to 130 nm, the new PAS 5500/900 meets the SIA (Semiconductor Industry Association) Technology Roadmap's timeline for qualification and pre-production of advanced 1-gigabit to 4-gigabit DRAMs and gigahertz-speed logic devices.

The new 193 nm Step & Scan tool is built upon ASML's production-proven PAS 5500 system architecture and uses the company's reliable, high-speed Step & Scan stages. A key difference from ASML's established 248 nm PAS 5500/500 Step & Scan product is the use of Carl Zeiss' new Starlith(TM) 900 lens with calcium fluoride (CaF2) elements for partial achromatization.

Also critical in achieving 150 nm resolution is an argon fluoride (ArF) laser source and the AERIAL II(TM) illuminator with high-transmission CaF2 and aspherical optical elements from Carl Zeiss.

"The PAS 5500/900 is targeted to meet the requirements projected in the SIA Technology Roadmap for the 1-gigabit DRAM using 150 nm processes and for development of the 4-gigabit DRAM using 130 nm processes," said Dr. Richard George, ASML's director of Step & Scan marketing.

"In achieving these demanding resolutions, 193 nm lithography uses cost -saving binary photomasks, unlike 248 nm technology which requires expensive phase shifting photomasks.

"The first series of PAS 5500/900 machines will be installed at customer facilities throughout the world within the next 12 months," Dr. George added. "Today's debut of this critical functional tool set and its process solutions, just in time for industry development activities, is the product of several years of intense R&D in 193 nm technology by ASML and its network of high-technology partners."

The PAS 5500/900 incorporates major technology breakthroughs in several critical areas. To produce the PAS 5500/900 optics, Carl Zeiss' expertise in CaF2 lens production was extended to meet volume manufacturing demands for 193 nm projection lenses. New coating technologies and polishing methods had to be developed to handle the crystalline structure of CaF2. Fully automated polishing systems produce the required surface accuracies of the quartz and CaF2 elements.

With its very large working distance from the final lens element to the photoresist's surface, the refractive optics design avoids lens contamination caused by outgassing from 193 nm photoresists during exposure. Compared to catadioptric lens design, where the lens is situated much closer to the photoresist, refractive lenses ensure increased uptime and productivity.

Developing the PAS 5500/900 optics also required advances in the manufacturing capabilities of the principal materials suppliers. Critical CaF2 homogeneity and purity specifications and required low levels of strain birefringence are manufacturing challenges being met by Schott and Bicron. For 193 nm-compatible quartz, Carl Zeiss enlisted the expertise of Heraeus and Corning.

Utilizing the resulting Starlith 900 lens with a numerical aperture (NA) adjustable from 0.45 to greater than 0.6, the PAS 5500/900 produces a field size of 26 x 33 mm.

Creating reliable ArF laser sources with lens bandwidths of 0.7 picometer and power specifications of 5 watts at 1,000 Hz was another vital need. This expertise was developed in parallel by Cymer and Lambda Physik, both of whom supply ArF lasers for the PAS 5500/900 system.

With the scheduled delivery of ASML's PAS 5500/900 to IMEC in Leuven, Belgium, during the first quarter of 1999, work will intensify on 193 nm-compatible photoresists and development of an overall, 193 nm lithography process for 130 nm/120 nm CMOS devices. These pioneering activities will be carried out in conjunction with the affiliate partners in IMEC's 193 nm program.

The PAS 5500/900 system has a list price of NLG 20 million ($10 million).

ASM Lithography is a world leader in photolithography equipment with an installed base of more than 1,000 systems at customer sites around the world.

The company, which had 1997 revenues of NLG 1,803 million ($889 million), is recognized by Dataquest as the no. 2 supplier of steppers in the world and was the highest ranked lithography company in VLSI Research Inc.'s annual customer satisfaction survey for 1998.

ASML is headquartered in Veldhoven, The Netherlands, with a U.S. operations center in Tempe, Ariz., and regional sales and service facilities in Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Singapore.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this news release that may be considered forward-looking statements may be subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those projected, including uncertainties in the market, pricing competition, procurement and manufacturing efficiencies, and other risks detailed from time to time in reports filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company assumes no obligation to update the information in this release.

Note to Editors: AERIAL II is a trademark of ASML. Starlith is a trademark of Carl Zeiss.

    CONTACT: ASM Lithography
              Vice President, Worldwide Sales:
              Dave Chavoustie, 602/383-4040
              Vice President, Marketing:
              Evert Polak, 31/40-230-3537
              Manager, Investor Relations:
              Jan Hoefnagels, 31/40-230-3938
              Director, Step & Scan Marketing:
              Dr. Richard George, 31/40-230-3335
              Marketing Communications:
              Mark Bigelow, 602/383-4475
               or
              The Loomis Group
              Bruce Hokanson, 360/574-4000