EIB loan to help Europe stay at the forefront of nanoelectrical research
Europe's largest independent micro and nanoelectrics research centre, IMEC, has announced a major expansion of research infrastructure at its Belgian base, supported with an 84 million euro package of financial investment from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and local partners. The IMEC (Interuniversity Microelectronic Centre) is to receive a 46.8 million euro loan from Fortis Bank - formulated with financial support from the EIB - in order to construct a range of new facilities, including a nanoelectrics clean room, a central utility building and an office block. This loan is guaranteed by the Government of Flanders, and follows the advancement of 37.2 million euro by the Flanders administration in November 2002. Speaking on 13 November, EIB President Philippe Maystadt said: 'With this loan, we're helping to build a unique research platform that will allow IMEC and its partners to remain at the forefront in nanotechnology research' EU Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin, also present, added that the EIB-IMEC agreement is a good example of the kind of European nanotechnology initiatives that are required 'to stay in the race with the US and Asia, which are both investing massively in this field.' The 46.8 million euro loan will be implemented using a favourable credit facility that the EIB offers to Belgian banks for projects in the area of innovation. Among the most important innovations in the plan, the new clean room will enable IMEC to maintain its worldwide leading role in research in the field of nano-scale technologies. IMEC's current facility is suitable for equipment that handles silicon wafers with a diameter of 200mm. However, semiconductor manufacturers are changing their production base from 200mm to 300mm silicon wafers to decrease the cost per chip for large-volume manufacturing. Thus, equipment suppliers develop the most advanced equipment only for 300mm. As a result, future advanced process research will need to be performed in a 300mm research facility, which IMEC will have following the construction of its new infrastructure. Work on the IMEC research facility began in February of this year and the technical infrastructure will completed and ready for the installation of new research equipment by April 2004.
Countries
Belgium