Applied Materials Names Head of New Silicon Systems Group

Applied Materials Inc. of Santa Clara, Calif., announced yesterday that Tom St. Dennis, senior vice president, has been named general manager of its new Silicon Systems Group, effective immediately. The Silicon Systems Group consolidates the business groups responsible for Applied's semiconductor manufacturing systems, such as products for thin-film deposition (physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition and atomic layer deposition), chemical mechanical planarization, wet clean, etch, rapid thermal processing, epi, track and metrology, and inspection. In 2006, the groups generated a combined $6 billion in revenue. St. Dennis rejoined Applied in 2005 as senior vice president and general manager of its Etch, Cleans, Front End and Implant Product business groups. His more than 25 years of semiconductor industry experience includes his past leadership of Applied's Physical Vapor Deposition and Planarization and Dielectric Deposition product business groups. He also served as president and CEO of embedded software company Wind River Systems from 1999 to 2003. As part of the organizational change, Applied announced that Farhad Moghadam, senior vice president and general manager of the Thin Films Product Business Group and Foundation Engineering, will resign to pursue other interests.