Armstadt, Germany, March 4, 2021 – Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, a leading science and technology company, is changing the name of its Performance Materials business sector to Electronics. The new name is the visible result of the strategic realignment conducted over the past several years and a further milestone of the “Bright Future” transformation program, which began in 2018.

“The renaming of our business sector to Electronics is a logical step for us. After all, the new name underscores our strategic focus on the electronics industry. At the same time, it clearly illustrates our contribution to a world characterized by tremendous technological advances and exponential data growth,” said Kai Beckmann, Member of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and CEO Electronics. “Under the ‘Bright Future’ umbrella, we’ve developed into a leading player within the electronics industry over the last few years. And with the new name Electronics, we’re now also making it clear, at a glance, what our business sector represents.”

As the company behind the companies advancing digital living, the Electronics business sector is involved in all major technology trends – be it 5G, Big Data, autonomous driving, artificial intelligence, or the Internet of Things. Thanks to these and other megatrends, the demand for ever smaller, faster and more energy-efficient electronics is continuously growing. For example, more and more of the components in modern chips are now approaching atomic dimensions.

“Bright Future” – A successful transformation program

The acquisitions of Intermolecular and Versum Materials in 2019 represented two very important moves within the scope of the ongoing transformation program. Thanks to the integration of Intermolecular, which offers unique processes and R&D capacities, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, is now capable of making the latest material innovations available to its customers in the electronics industry even more rapidly. Through the acquisition of Versum Materials, the company has expanded its portfolio to include innovation-driven, ultra-high-purity process chemicals, gases and equipment for semiconductor manufacturing. The name Versum Materials, which has been in use separately until now, will be superseded by the new name of the business sector.

However, the name change will not have any effect on the existing organizational structure of the business sector, which comprises the three business units Semiconductor Solutions, Display Solutions and Surface Solutions. Electronics thus covers a particularly broad range of products and solutions, including high-tech materials and solutions for the semiconductor industry as well as liquid crystals and OLED materials for displays and effect pigments for coatings and cosmetics.

In September 2020, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, raised its expectations for average annual organic sales growth of Electronics to 3% to 4% against the backdrop of its focus on the semiconductor industry, which is showing strong growth. The business sector currently generates around 90% of its sales in the two business units Semiconductor Solutions and Display Solutions.

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SANTA ROSA, Calif., – February 17, 2021 – PNI Sensor, the world’s foremost expert in precision location, motion tracking, and fusion of sensor systems into real-world applications, today announced availability of the new TargetPoint TCM™ gyro-stabilized digital magnetic compass. TargetPoint TCM incorporates PNI’s high sensitivity Magneto-Inductive sensors with the latest high stability 3-axis MEMS accelerometer and 3-axis MEMS gyroscopes providing accurate orientation while in dynamic motion and in magnetically challenging environments. TargetPoint TCM excels in conditions that cause errors in traditional digital magnetic compasses.

TargetPoint TCM uses advanced magnetic distortion compensation and calibration scoring algorithms to counter the effects of hard and soft iron interference, providing highly accurate heading information in almost any environment and orientation.

TargetPoint TCM features and benefits include:
 Patented magnetic anomaly rejection algorithms eliminate errors due to magnetic distortion, even in magnetically harsh environments
 Gyro-stabilized compass for dynamic accuracy of sub-0.5 degrees of heading accuracy
 Multiple calibration methods, including 12-point hard- and soft-iron calibration methods, are available to ensure ease of calibration for all applications
 ITAR-free

“For military rangefinder and targeting systems developers who need accurate orientation in demanding conditions, TargetPoint TCM is a ruggedized digital magnetic compass built to handle weapons shock,” said Robin Stoecker, vice president of sales and marketing at PNI Sensor. “It’s an ideal choice for targeting applications that require reliability, consistency and accuracy.”

Pricing and Availability
For product specifications, download the TargetPoint TCM product sheet. For pricing and availability, please contact PNI Sales or your regional PNI representative.

About PNI Sensor
With over 30 years of experience, PNI is the world’s foremost expert in precision location, motion tracking, and fusion of sensor systems into real-world applications. PNI’s sensors and algorithms serve as the cornerstone of successful IoT projects and other mission-critical applications where pinpoint location, accuracy, and low power consumption are essential. Building on decades of patented sensor and algorithm development, PNI offers the industry’s highest-performance geomagnetic sensor in its class, location and motion coprocessors, high-performance modules, sensor fusion algorithms, and complete sensor systems. To learn more, please visit www.pnicorp.com.

Media Contact:
Robin Stoecker
PNI Sensor
Tel: +1 707-566-2260 |Email: [email protected]

• Read more about PNI Sensor’s New TargetPoint Tilt-Compensated Compass Module (TCM) Provides Accurate Heading in any Environment

Semiconductor equipment manufacturer ClassOne Technology has just released its proprietary new SoftSeal™ Plating Rotor, designed to enhance processing performance on the company’s Solstice® electroplating systems. The announcement was made by ClassOne’s CEO, Byron Exarcos and Senior Technology Director, John Ghekiere.

“Together with the plating reactor, the plating rotor design is key to maximizing on-wafer performance,” said Exarcos. “It’s responsible for distributing the electrical supply across the wafer, isolating electrolytes from the electrical contacts, and a great deal more. Which is why we’re constantly working to optimize rotor performance. The new SoftSeal is our latest and most advanced generation in Solstice rotors, and it’s already achieving unprecedented levels of electroplating uniformity along with reduced cost of ownership.”

“This highly-uniform performance comes from a combination of finely-tuned rotating-disk electrode physics and an optimized density of electrical contacts around the wafer,” said Ghekiere. "The ‘SoftSeal’ name comes from its high-performance FFKM elastomer seal which very effectively isolates plating chemistries from the wafer’s edge-exclusion zone. The new rotor also adapts automatically to substrate thickness, so it can accept thick or thin substrates without any adjustment. The design accommodates both flatted and multi-flat wafers, and it’s customizable to non-standard wafer sizes. Plus, the seal is more robust than on competitive rotors, meaning longer part life and no handling concerns.”

“In addition, the SoftSeal rotor’s low profile enables bubble-free entry into the plating bath,” Ghekiere noted. “And a unique design feature directs excess chemistry back into the bath at the end of the plating process. This is particularly important for conserving expensive plating baths such as gold. And, after processing, a special wafer retrieval method eliminates wafer flexing and stress by eliminating the need for extraction force at the center of the wafer.”

ClassOne stated that the new SoftSeal rotor is designed to fit all models of the company's Solstice electroplating systems and it will be standard equipment on all of the new tools going forward.

ClassOne Solstice systems are designed to provide high-performance, cost-efficient, single-wafer electroplating specifically for ≤200mm processing. The series includes the Solstice S8 and Solstice S4 for fully automated 8-chamber and 4-chamber high-speed production. It also includes the semiautomated Solstice LT, with up to three chambers that can be used both for process development and production. In addition to electroplating, the unique Plating-Plus™ capabilities of the Solstice platform enable it to handle many other important surface preparation functions, such as wafer cleaning, high-pressure metal lift-off, resist strip, UBM etch, and more. Class-leading performance and flexibility consistently make Solstice the tool of choice for ≤200mm plating across a range of product categories.

• Read more about ClassOne’s Next-generation SoftSeal Plating Rotor Enhances Performance of Solstice Electroplating Systems

ECM Lab Solutions is a new offer from the ECM Group, dedicated to laboratories, research centers and universities. This offer combines equipment from three companies and four brands: ECM Technologies, ECM Greentech, SEMCO Technologies & Cyberstar.

With more than 90 years of experience in manufacturing industrial equipment, this ECM Group offer highlights the diverse and flexbile nature of ECM's technology and expertise by transitioning from heat treating steels and automotive applications to a wide range of research and specialty fields.

With advanced technologies for crystal growth, vacuum heat treatment and chemical vapor deposition, ECM Lab Solutions offers reliable solutions for semiconductor, solar, medical and other mechanical applications.

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ClassOne Technology, global supplier of high-performance semiconductor electroplating and surface preparation systems, announced the sale of its Solstice® S8 system to South Korean chip manufacturer, Point Engineering Co. The eight-chambered Solstice plating tool will be installed at Point Engineering’s manufacturing facility in Asan City, South Korea. The announcement was made by ClassOne‘s CEO, Byron Exarcos, and PEC‘s CEO, Bum-Mo Ahn.

"Our products call for unique manufacturing approaches,” said Bum-Mo. “In addition to copper, we require plating of palladium cobalt alloy into highly variant features; and this plating is done on a proprietary substrate. We needed a volume-manufacturing platform that has the necessary flexibility without sacrificing reliability. The Solstice S8 covers these needs very well, and it also has a compact footprint to conserve fab space."

Exarcos pointed out that Point Engineering's new Solstice configuration includes a CopperMax™ processing chamber, a ClassOne-proprietary feature specifically designed to optimize copper plating. The chamber enables consistent high-quality, high-rate copper plating, while maximizing uptime and dramatically reducing bottom-line operating costs.

“Point Engineering has gained considerable respect in the industry for its semiconductor parts, which frequently go into probe pins and micro power inductors," said Exarcos. “In today’s semiconductor industry, we’re seeing that new product categories often drive the need for novel approaches in manufacturing. Point Engineering’s groundbreaking new products demand a process-experienced equipment provider and a flexible platform. We’re gratified that Point Engineering has chosen ClassOne and Solstice to partner with them on their next-generation products.”

The Solstice S8 is an 8-chambered system designed and built by ClassOne for high-performance, fully-automated electroplating and surface preparation, specifically for ≤200mm semiconductor wafer processing. The Solstice series also includes the S4, which provides up to four processing chambers, and the LT, with up to three chambers. In addition to electroplating, Solstice systems also provide Plating-Plus™ surface preparation capabilities, including wafer cleaning, high-pressure metal lift-off, resist strip, UBM etch and more. This multi-processing flexibility allows users to streamline wafer production and increase cost efficiencies by reducing the number of different processing tools required in the fab.

• Read more about South Korean Point Engineering Chooses ClassOne’s Solstice S8 for Advanced Semiconductor Plating