Brion Teams with Crolles2 Alliance Partners to Develop Lithography Process Window Applications.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Brion Technologies, the pioneer and leader in Lithography-Driven Design & Manufacturing(TM), today announced a joint development agreement with STMicroelectronics, Philips Semiconductors and Freescale Semiconductor, R&D partners in the Crolles2 Alliance. Brion has delivered RET/OPC process window-enabled applications that run on Brion's hardware-accelerated Tachyon(TM) platform. The Crolles2 Alliance partners and Brion intend to further test and develop these applications, checking and maximizing the lithography manufacturability for chip designs. Comprehensive model-based simulations of multiple focus and exposure conditions are used to enable larger process windows for advanced manufacturing by avoiding yield-limiting lithography "hot spots."

The three companies have also entered into licenses for Brion's Tachyon RDI product. The system was recently installed in the Crolles2 pilot facility and is expected to be deployed in a production environment for 90 nm and 65 nm designs and beyond. The RDI system runs full-chip model-based RET Design Inspection, which has rapidly become an essential production requirement for 110 nm and below processes.

Crolles2 Operations Director Joel Hartmann emphasized, "We're eager to validate all new designs using Brion's Tachyon system. We believe that Brion's full-chip model-based process window verification is critically important to our 65 nm production environment and will result in predictable cycle times and faster time-to-market." Brion's Chief Executive Officer Eric Chen stated, "The engineers and managers that we are working with in the Crolles2 Alliance are recognized as world-class leaders in OPC and RET lithography. It's a great pleasure to be working with such a strong team to jointly develop and optimize Lithography-Driven Design & Manufacturing."

Brion's Tachyon platform, noted for its unmatched speed for full-chip verification, is a hybrid architecture that combines the strengths of image-based simulation with the polygon- and contour-based geometry processing used by conventional EDA tools for physical design. This hybrid approach enables best-in-class accuracy, comprehensive coverage, predictable run times and flexible user controllability.

About the Crolles2 Alliance

Under a five-year agreement extending through to December 2007, the Crolles2 Alliance brings together STMicroelectronics, Philips and Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., in an alliance of unprecedented scope in the microelectronics sector. Their joint Crolles2 center is focusing on specific CMOS technologies at the forefront of semiconductor R&D, including design platform and packaging. The Alliance is currently running 90 nm in production, 65 nm for prototyping and continues developing CMOS processes at 45 nm and, ultimately, the 32 nm node.

About Brion Technologies

Brion Technologies, Inc. is the pioneer and leader in Lithography-Driven Design & Manufacturing(TM). Founded in 2002, the privately held company is headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The combination of Brion's Tachyon(TM) platform, a highly accurate and ultrafast data and simulation engine, and its Aerion(TM) technology of measuring aerial images at-resolution and in-scanner, enables a unique set of capabilities to address the interrelated challenges of design, photomask making and wafer printing in semiconductor microlithography. For further information about the company and its products, visit Brion Technologies' website at www.brion.com or call 408-653-1500.

* Lithography-Driven Design & Manufacturing, Tachyon and Aerion are trademarks of Brion Technologies, Inc.