Rebound ahead for semiconductor test
R. Keith Lee, President and CEO of Advantest America, predicts recovery for semiconductor test.
Larry Maloney, Contributing Technical Editor -- Test & Measurement World, 10/1/2009 2:00:00 AM
 R. KEITH LEE President & CEO Advantest America, Inc. Santa Clara, CA President and CEO of Advantest America, R. Keith Lee is a technology industry veteran of more than 25 years. Since he joined Advantest America in 1984, Lee has held senior management positions in design and development, sales and marketing, and applications and systems engineering. Before Advantest, he worked for Megatest, Mitel, and AT&T in senior marketing management and engineering positions. He holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Auburn University. Contributing editor Larry Maloney interviewed Keith Lee by phone on new technologies for semiconductor test and emerging applications that will boost the industry. Read the continuation of this interview. |
Q: What evidence do you see of a turnaround in semiconductor test?
A: It’s difficult to predict the future, but we see some early signs of recovery. The large economic stimulus program from the Chinese government, for example, is driving a resurgence in consumer electronics, which increases demand for ICs. We’re also seeing industry consolidation, both in the semiconductor industry and in test equipment, especially memory test. That, too, is a healthy sign and an important step toward recovery. Recent inventory adjustments are spurring a rebound in chip prices, which bodes well for the future, and there’s continuing progress in the early adoption of next-generation microprocessors and DDR3-SDRAM.
Q: What sectors of the semiconductor market will lead the recovery?
A: What we are hearing from our customers in the SOC (system-on-chip) market is that consumer electronics will lead the way, particularly netbooks and smartphones. The increasing complexity of these products will stimulate the market for test equipment.
Another positive development is the launch of the Windows 7 operating system this fall, which should trigger an increase in corporate PC purchases in the first half of 2010. Longer term, the test industry will benefit from the growth of RFICs and the increasing semiconductor content in automotive applications. Also in automotive, we expect to see more applications for power-management ICs for hybrid cars and other green sectors.
Q: Which of the Advantest platforms are in the best position to benefit as the industry rebounds from recession?
A: There are two key platforms I’d like to cite. One is our flagship T2000 line for SOC testing, a product that has done very well since its launch in the digital logic space for microprocessors and graphics processors. At the end of 2008, we released a new portfolio of RF test modules for the T2000 platform, and we’re now seeing some early adopters for those products. In addition, we will announce in 2010 a series of mixed-signal modules for the T2000.
A second very significant platform, announced in July, is the T5385 test system for memory wafer test, with the capability to test up to 768 die in parallel for DRAM. This platform is particularly well-suited for testing the new high-speed DDR3 memory.
Q: Overall, what are the key properties that Advantest wants to build into its ATE (automated test equipment) products?
A: A common theme throughout our platforms is parallel test, which we pioneered over two decades ago for memory and analog/digital applications. Now, we are migrating that same capability to SOC test. Earlier this year, Advantest unveiled a module for the T2000 that can test four RF devices in parallel. Customers are responding very well to this parallel test strategy.
| Read past Viewpoint columns at www.tmworld.com/viewpoint. |
Q: Is there much synergy between Advantest’s test solutions and its mechatronics systems?
A: Absolutely. Our mechatronics systems operation provides development and delivery of robotics handling equipment for electronics package test. In the memory test area, we developed many years ago what we call the test cell, which includes the tester, handling equipment, and interconnect technology. We’ve had a very positive response from customers to this turnkey approach, which can be optimized for very high performance and throughput. We’re now pushing this same test cell concept into the SOC area and seeing some very good results.
Read the continuation of this interview.
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