STMicroelectronics Inaugurates MEMS Production in Italy

Semiconductor supplier STMicroelectronics announced today it inaugurated a new 200-mm (8-in.) semiconductor wafer fabrication line dedicated to microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) at its manufacturing site in Agrate, near Milan, Italy. ST said it is the first major MEMS manufacturer to produce devices using 200-mm wafers and it has invested about $40 million in transforming its former 150-mm (6-in.) production area into the MEMS line, which will manufacture parts for accelerometers, gyroscopes, miniature microphones and pressure sensors. The MEMS area employs more than 100 people and occupies 1300 square meters at the site. MEMS technology allows the electrical and mechanical properties of silicon to be simultaneously exploited and is being rapidly adopted in a wide range of computer, consumer, automotive and industrial applications. The inauguration event featured a roundtable discussion of Italy's role in high-tech industries by Italian academics, writers and industrialists; an overview of MEMS markets and opportunities presented by Benedetto Vigna, general manager of ST's MEMS business unit; and a customer application example inside laptop computers, presented by Hisao Tsukazawa, group manager of Toshiba's PC Development Center.

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Published: November 2006

Glossary

accelerometer: An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms, it measures acceleration. Accelerometers are widely used in various electronic devices to detect and measure the acceleration forces acting on the device in different directions. Key features and principles of accelerometers include: Acceleration measurement: The primary function of an accelerometer is to measure acceleration, which is the rate of change of...
gyroscope: A gyroscope is a mechanical device consisting of a spinning disk or wheel mounted on a spinning axis in such a way that its orientation remains fixed regardless of any movement of its mounting structure. Gyroscopes are used to measure or maintain orientation and angular velocity in various applications, such as navigation systems, aircraft stabilization, robotics, and more. The principle behind a gyroscope is based on the conservation of angular momentum, where the spinning motion of the disk...
microelectromechanical systems: Refers to micron-size complex machines that have physical dimensions suitable for the fabrication of optical switches for use in state-of-the-art communications networks.
nano: An SI prefix meaning one billionth (10-9). Nano can also be used to indicate the study of atoms, molecules and other structures and particles on the nanometer scale. Nano-optics (also referred to as nanophotonics), for example, is the study of how light and light-matter interactions behave on the nanometer scale. See nanophotonics.
photonics: The technology of generating and harnessing light and other forms of radiant energy whose quantum unit is the photon. The science includes light emission, transmission, deflection, amplification and detection by optical components and instruments, lasers and other light sources, fiber optics, electro-optical instrumentation, related hardware and electronics, and sophisticated systems. The range of applications of photonics extends from energy generation to detection to communications and...
sensor: 1. A generic term for detector. 2. A complete optical/mechanical/electronic system that contains some form of radiation detector.

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