Bruker Corp., Billerica, Mass., announces that it is to acquire the shares of Jordan Valley Semiconductors Ltd. for its innovative in-line X-ray metrology products, which complement Bruker’s leading position in analytical X-ray technologies. The acquisition uniquely positions Bruker to offer unmatched solutions for advanced problems in nanotechnology research and semiconductor metrology. With trends toward increased connectivity and access to even larger amounts of data, new nanometrology needs are driving growth opportunities at advanced semiconductor nodes with even smaller features and three dimensional structures.
The combination and synergy between the X-ray metrology solutions of Jordan Valley and Bruker’s advanced X-ray technologies and automated atomic force microscopy systems is expected to position Bruker’s Semiconductor Division to be a leading-edge metrology system provider for semiconductor applications at advanced nodes.
Jordan Valley Semiconductors, located in Israel, has been at the forefront of X-ray metrology and defect-detection technology for the semiconductor industry for 30 years. Seventy-five percent of the world’s top 25 semiconductor manufacturers rely on Jordan Valley metrology tools for front-end and back-end applications, including the development of next-generation thin films. Jordan Valley’s tools are fully automated, non-contact, and non-destructive tools designed for production control on patterned or blanket wafers.
“The rapid growth of mobile technology, cloud computing and big data processing generates new requirements and opportunities for faster and more precise metrology of smaller feature sizes and 3D structures at advanced semiconductor nodes,” said Mark R. Munch, Ph.D., President of the Nano Group, which includes Bruker’s Semiconductor Division. “Jordan Valley has been a true pioneer in offering advanced and unique X-ray metrology solutions as feature sizes continue to shrink. The combination of Jordan Valley’s core metrology strengths with Bruker’s complementary X-ray technologies will enable us to stay ahead of this rapid development and continue to support the semiconductor industry with unmatched next-generation X-ray solutions.”
