Veteran chip exec envisions Brazilian mega-fab

Dylan McGrath, EE Times
(02/03/2010 2:50 PM EST)

SAN FRANCISCO—Later this week, Brazilian semiconductor startup Ceitec SA plans to officially cut the ribbon on its fab in Porto Alegre, in Southern Brazil, in a milestone event expected to be attended by several government officials, including the country's president. By all accounts, the Porto Alegre fab is modest by modern semiconductor manufacturing technology standards, capable of about 1,000 six-inch wafers per week using 0.6 micron process technology licensed from X-Fab Semiconductor Foundries AG. But according to Ceitec's top executive, the Porto Alegre fab is only a stepping stone, one that will eventually lead to a large, 300-mm "TSMC-type fab" in Brazil within three years.

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