Atmel and Tower Semiconductor announce CMOS image-sensor agreement

MAY 20--Atmel Corporation (San Jose, CA; www.atmel.com), a leader in the development and fabrication of advanced semiconductor solutions, and Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (Migdal Haemek, Israel; www.towersemi.com), an independent specialty foundry, have agreed on a CMOS image-sensor technology development partnership. Atmel and Tower will work together to design and develop process technology predominantly to be used in consumer products. Under the agreement, both companies have rights to use the jointly developed technology. Tower revenue from this agreement will be from foundry wafer sales and is expected to start in 2006.

Tower and Atmel will be developing CMOS image sensor-related processes, including technology modules specifically designed for advanced photodiode structures. Process development and fabrication activities will be carried out at Tower's Fab2 in Migdal Haemek, Israel. Atmel's engineering team in Grenoble, France, will perform circuit and pixel design and productization activities.

Said Jean-Philippe Lamarcq, imaging product line director of Atmel, "As our customers' technology demands get more sophisticated, we realize the value of working with a specialized foundry that has a well-deserved reputation for manufacturing state-of-the-art CMOS image sensors."

"Partnering with Atmel, which brings years of image-sensor experience in both CCD and CMOS technologies, will benefit both Tower and its customers by creating innovative technologies to produce a wide variety of advanced CMOS image sensors," said Cliff Drowley, vice president of Tower's CMOS Image Sensor Technology Line. "We are excited to be working with Atmel to create next-generation solutions."