OPTIMIZATION OF MICROPROCESSOR MANUFACTURING EQUIPMENT The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), its laboratories and production facilities are committed to helping businesses in the U.S. to improve the cycle from new ideas and product innovation to product development and commercialization. In order to achieve this goal, the DOE has put in place a program to transfer technologies developed at its laboratories to the private sector for commercial applications. DOE's objective in doing this is to establish mutually beneficial partnerships that can leverage advanced technologies and enhance the U.S. position in the ever changing global marketplace. Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia) is one of the participating laboratories in this program. By this announcement, Sandia is soliciting expressions of interest from U.S. businesses for potential licensing of the following technology for which patent application has been filed and allowed recently by the U.S. Patent Office. OPTIMIZATION OF MICROPROCESSOR MANUFACTURING EQUIPMENT The demands placed on the performance of semiconductor wafer processing equipment are approaching the limits of conventional tool designs. In particular, "stagnation-flow" reactors (in which the flow of etching or deposition precursors is forced down onto a single wafer) have inherent uniformity limitations at low pressures. Sandia National Laboratories has developed an invention which improves the performance of both etch and deposition stagnation-flow reactors through modifications of the internal reactor configuration. Demonstration tests were successfully performed by retrofitting a commercial etch tool, resulting in a factor of four improvement in uniformity with very little change in etch rate. These improvements were first predicted with reacting-flow computer simulations that further indicate even greater improvements if tool modifications are incorporated into the original design. This invention will deliver improved uniformity for a much wider range of process conditions than is possible with current chamber designs. In addition, using the methods of this invention should reduce the development time to perfect new chamber designs and result in a robust design capable of operating over a much wider range of process conditions. A patent has been filed by Sandia and allowed by the U.S. PTO. If you are interested in this technology, please send a written expression of interest to Sheila Pounds, MS 1380, Sandia National Laboratories, P.O.Box 5800, Albuquerque, NM 87185 (FAX: 505-843-4163) by June 1, 1999. This should include details about your company and its product line, potential commercial interest for the invention and any other details of interest. E-MAIL: Sheila Pounds, slpound@sandia.gov. Posted 05/17/99 (W-SN332187).

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