PMT ANNOUNCES FOURTH-QUARTER AND YEAR-END RESULTS.

CHATSWORTH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 27, 1997--Plasma & Materials Technologies Inc. (PMT) (NASDAQ:PMAT), an international supplier of etch and deposition equipment used to manufacture semiconductors, Thursday reported its unaudited financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 1996.

PMT's consolidated 1996 financial results include the operating results of Electrotech Ltd. and Electrotech Equipments Ltd. (Electrotech), which were acquired on Nov. 15, 1996. Electrotech was acquired for an aggregate of $75 million cash and 5.6 million shares of newly issued PMT common stock, and has been accounted for as a purchase.

Consolidated revenues for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 1996, were $14,608,953, as compared with $7,292,388 reported for the fourth quarter of 1995, including $8,781,000 related to Electrotech for the six-week period from the date of acquisition to Dec. 31, 1996. Revenues for the year ended Dec. 31, 1996, were $42,227,245, compared with revenues of $21,289,713 for the same period last year.

Orders booked in the fourth quarter were approximately $23 million, including Electrotech orders.

PMT reported a consolidated net loss of $97,597,264, or $8.40 per share, for the fourth quarter in 1996, which includes a one-time acquisition-related in-process R&D charge of $86,028,748, compared with net income of $923,497, or 10 cents per share, for the fourth quarter of 1995.

PMT recorded a consolidated net loss of $94,474,754, or $10.03 per share, for the year ended Dec. 31, 1996, as compared with net income of $117,885, or 2 cents per share, for the year ended Dec. 31, 1995.

The consolidated operating loss for the fourth quarter and year ended Dec. 31, 1996, reflects reduced margins due to the allocation of a portion of the purchase price (as required under Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 16) to step up Electrotech's inventory on hand at Nov. 15, 1996.

This stepped-up inventory was partially charged to cost of sales during the six-week period ended Dec. 31, 1996, as such inventory was sold. Other acquisition-related charges such as the stepped-up inventory charge are also expected to unfavorably impact operating results during the first quarter of 1997.

Consolidated operating results were also unfavorably impacted by: the amortization of intangible assets acquired in connection with the acquisition of Electrotech ($451,975); higher interest costs associated with the borrowings under a 7-1/8 percent convertible debt offering of $86,250,000 principal amount of convertible subordinated notes which were offered to fund part of the purchase price for the acquisition of Electrotech; a $3,392,640 charge during the fourth quarter of 1996 to bad-debt expense as a result of increasing the reserve for doubtful accounts receivable; and inventory write-downs during the fourth quarter.

``We are very pleased to have completed the acquisition of Electrotech, and we are now positioned for .25 micron production expansion in the major segments of Etch, PVD and CVD,'' said Greg Campbell, PMT's chief executive officer. ``We are encouraged to see the order rate increasing and believe our prospects for growth in the second half of 1997 are good.''

1996 Highlights

Delivery of three production systems to Hyundai highlighted 1996's results for PMT's MORI high-density plasma (HDP) etch system. In addition, PMT received repeat orders in 1996 from Texas Instruments and LG Semicon, as well as a first system order from IBM, LSI Logic, Sharp and Daewoo.

To date, the total number of companies that have purchased PMT's MORI HDP etch systems for R&D and production now exceeds 12.

Flowfill chemical vapor deposition (CVD) saw increased market acceptance, with first equipment shipped to several customers by Electrotech prior to the acquisition. Highlights of 1996 include the discovery of a low dielectric constant silicon dioxide material that the company believes has shown promise of increasing the speed of advanced logic devices.

This discovery has resulted in an increase in demand from semiconductor logic manufacturers -- many of which have already begun working with the company.

Eighteen Sigma PVD systems were sold during 1996, with approximately half that number of Forcefill modules shipping to customers such as Siemens and Texas Instruments -- the majority of which were sold by Electrotech prior to the acquisition. The total number of companies that have purchased Forcefill systems for R&D and production qualification is steadily increasing.

PMT provides a broad line of advanced manufacturing systems that are used for three of the four major processing steps in the manufacture of a semiconductor device: etch, physical vapor deposition (PVD) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

The company's corporate headquarters are located in Chatsworth, north of Los Angeles. Manufacturing is conducted in Newport, Wales, and Chatsworth, Calif. PMT operates worldwide through wholly owned subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, France and South Korea.

Safe-harbor statement: Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. In addition to factors discussed above, the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include the following: product demand and market acceptance, the timing and success of new-product introductions, business issues and growth within the semiconductor-manufacturing industry, competitive factors such as rival etch and deposition technologies, and availability of key supplier components at reasonable prices. For a description of risks attendant to PMT and the semiconductor-manufacturing industry, see the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. -0-

                   PLASMA & MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES INC.
             Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
                              (unaudited)

                           Three Months Ended         Year Ended
                          Dec. 31,    Dec. 31,    Dec. 31,    Dec. 31,
                            1996        1995        1996       1995
Revenues:
  Product sales      $13,534,653  $7,292,388  $39,385,818  $20,889,713
  License revenues            --          --           --      400,000
  Contract revenues    1,074,300          --    2,841,427           --
                      14,608,953   7,292,388   42,227,245   21,289,713

Costs and expenses:
  Cost of goods sold 11,605,752    3,842,514   24,596,756   11,143,716
  Research and
   development        4,695,839    1,371,381   10,145,185    4,566,853
  Selling, general
   and administrative 9,496,563    1,671,013   16,621,716    5,943,702
  Amortization of
   intangibles          451,975           --      451,975           --
  In process
   technology        86,028,748           --   86,028,748           --
                    112,278,877    6,884,908  137,844,380   21,654,271

Income (loss)
 from operations    (97,669,924)     407,480  (95,617,135)    (364,558)

Other:
  Interest income
   (expense), net    (1,279,483)     516,017     (192,785)     483,243

Income (loss)
 before income
 tax provision      (98,949,407)     923,497  (95,809,920)     118,685

Income tax
 provision           (1,352,143)          --   (1,335,166)         800

Net income (loss)  $(97,597,264)   $ 923,497 $(94,474,754)   $ 117,885

Net income (loss) per share:
  Primary               ($8.40)        $0.10      ($10.03)       $0.02
  Fully diluted         ($8.40)        $0.10      ($10.03)       $0.02

Total shares used in per share
 calculations:
  Primary           11,620,373     9,043,861    9,420,020    6,593,311
  Fully diluted     11,620,373     9,042,814    9,420,020    6,593,311

CONTACT: Plasma & Materials Technologies Inc., Chatsworth

Frederick Reynolds, 818/886-8000, ext. 155

818/886-2245 (fax)

[e-mail] (e-mail)

http://www.pmat.com