Companies remain cautious in capital spending although many positive signs point to a recovery in the semiconductor industry, Applied Materials president and CEO Michael R. Splinter said during a media meeting in Taiwan.

Splinter said that utilization rates for advanced processes for some customers have reached a high levels in which aggressive capacity expansion would have begun in the past. But the lengthy downturn is holding the customers back.

Splinter was optimistic that if yields of 12-inch fabs can be improved to match the level of 8-inch fabs, not only will 0.13-micron and 90nm become the leading process technologies, but production costs for customers can cut in half, something that happens about once every 10 years in the semiconductor industry.

By: DocMemory
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