SAN JOSE, CA – Worldwide sales of semiconductors rose sharply in August, growing to $21.5 billion, an increase of 4.9% year-over-year, and an increase of 4.5% sequentially, the Semiconductor Industry Association reports.

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BEAVERTON, OR – PCB maker Merix Corp. posted a first quarter loss of $2.5 million, down from a profit of $3.6 million in the same period last year.

Revenue fell 3% to $100.1 million, Merix reports.

The company says it attributes this decline to lower North American revenue.

Merix expects second quarter results to be in the range of a breakeven to a net loss of $2 million.

For the quarter ending in November, the company forecasts revenue in the range of $98 million to $102 million.

HERNDON, VA – The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative, an industry-led consortium focused on identifying and closing technology gaps, will kick off its 2009 roadmap in Munich on Nov. 14 at Productronica.

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HERNDON, VA – The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative, an industry-led consortium focused on identifying and closing technology gaps, has published its 2007 research priorities.

iNEMI grouped 90 identified needs into five research areas: manufacturing processes, system integration (IT and technology integration), energy and the environment, materials and reliability, and design.

The top priority for manufacturing processes shifted from development of reduced cost manufacturing processes that support rapid miniaturization to development of a new methodology/strategy for R&D to be conducted in the global outsourcing environment.

While there is still a need to continue improvements to the IT infrastructure, the top research need currently identified for system integration is the development of 3D interconnect structures with associated thermal management, reports iNEMI.

According to the group, the top two research priorities for energy and environment are the development of sound scientific methods to evaluate environmental impact of materials and research into the development of new innovative energy sources.

The top research priority in materials and reliability is the development of the next generation of solder alloys with better area array shock, lower cost, lower temperature and reduced copper dissolution issues, the researchers add. And the second research priority is the development of halogen-free materials.

The top priorities for design are improved, integrated and standardized DfX tools for compatibility across supply chains, and low-cost solutions for carrying >10Gb/s signal rates between components on a PCB, iNEMI says. 

The document identifies R&D priorities for the next 10 years by combining findings from this year’s Roadmap with R&D needs identified through follow-on gap analysis meetings.

This information is intended to assist corporate research labs, government funding agencies and academic research centers in focusing limited resources on those areas that will yield the greatest return.