TSMC will expand its working relationship with Leuven, Belgium-based nanoelectronics research center IMEC through an agreement that will see the top foundry base its extended European research efforts at IMEC's premises.

Under the agreement, TSMC extends its collaboration with IMEC as a core partner. The two parties have been working together since 2005. IMEC¡¯s core partner program focuses on collaborative R&D for 22 nm and beyond IC process technologies.

¡°This agreement with TSMC represents an extension of our long-term strategic and fruitful partnership," said Luc Van den hove, executive VP and COO of IMEC, in a statement this morning. "We are proud that TSMC joins forces with IMEC to strengthen their global R&D. This proves the industrial importance of our semiconductor scaling research. We are confident that IMEC¡¯s joint research model will contribute to TSMC¡¯s approach ¡®collaborate to innovate.'"

Indeed, TSMC has stated its commitment to increasing R&D. TSMC in April confirmed with Electronic News that it was hiring in R&D and stated approximately $162 million (5.5 billion Taiwanese dollars) in machinery spending.
 
IMEC believes that, by basing its European R&D at the IMEC facilities, TSMC can benefit from its state-of-the-art clean rooms. IMEC said it and its members will benefit from TSMC¡¯s broad-based technology roadmap and platform expertise, customers, suppliers, and ecosystem partners.
 
The TSMC agreement is the latest in a string of announcements from Belgium-based IMEC this week. Van den hove was named CEO earlier this week, taking over the role held for the past decade by Gilbert Declerck, who will continue to serve IMEC as executive officer. The position changes go into effect on July 1.

IMEC also announced today that photovoltaics manufacturer Schott Solar has entered into a three-year research partnership that will see it join IMEC¡¯s recently launched silicon photovoltaics industrial affiliation program.

IMEC further announced today that it has partnered with VIB, a life science institute, and the Leuven University, K.U.Leuven, to set up a joint basic research initiative focused on "unraveling" the neuronal circuitry of the human brain. The Neuroelectronics Research Flanders (NERF) will be housed on the IMEC campus, where researchers will work in cross-disciplinary teams and can utilize from IMEC¡¯s new 1,000m2 neurolab.

The announcements come as IMEC celebrates its 25th anniversary at a technology forum this week.

By: DocMemory
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