Alan Fletcher Named VP at PerkinElmer
Life sciences and photonics company PerkinElmer Inc. of Waltham, Mass., announced that Alan Fletcher, PhD, has joined the company as vice president of business development for its Life and Analytical Sciences business. Fletcher will be responsible for growing the biodiscovery business through strategic partnerships and alliances in life science research, and introducing new technologies for GPCR, kinase and biomarker drug target classes. Fletcher, a 20-year veteran of the drug discovery and life science industries, joins PerkinElmer from GE Healthcare, where he held several positions in the company's life science and discovery systems business units. Prior to this, Fletcher held leadership roles for several companies in the areas of consumer products, biotechnology, R&D, and technology transfer. He has a doctorate in biochemical pharmacology from the University of London and has published papers on drug discovery and high throughput screening. Fletcher has served on the board of the Society of Biomolecular Sciences since 2002. (7/16/2008)
STMicroelectronics Orders ESI's Cignis Laser
Electro Scientific Industries Inc. of Portland, Ore., a provider of photonic and laser systems for microengineering applications, announced that Switzerland-based semiconductor company STMicroelectronics has ordered its Cignis laser singulation system. ESI introduced the laser this week at the Semicon West 2008 microelectronics trade show in San Francisco. The order for the picosecond laser system is the result of an ongoing partnership between the two companies to produce a flexible, scalable laser for applications including wafer dicing, scribing and CMOS image sensor singulation, ESI said. "As the industry moves toward thinner wafers with lower k dielectrics for advanced devices, mechanical processes are reaching their limits," said Gareth Bignell, program manager, 300-mm equipment selection, STMicroelectronics. "Of the three types of wafer scribing processes available on the market, we found that mechanical saws could damage the dielectric layers, while nanosecond lasers weakened the wafer's die break strength." Bignell said ESI's experiments with picosecond lasers led to Cignis, its product for wafers thinner than 100 µm. As a result, "...we are optimistic that our collaboration will enable us to quickly and effectively transition from 65-nm to 45-nm processing to meet our product roadmaps." (7/16/2008)
UMC Restructures Executive Team
Semiconductor foundry UMC of Hsinchu, Taiwan, announced two new appointments to its executive team. The board of directors elected Stan Hung as UMC chairman and Shih-Wei Sun as CEO. The election was held on the heels of Chairman and CEO Jackson Hu’s resignation; Hu will now serve as an advisor to the company. Hung has served as UMC’s chief financial officer, and before that as senior vice president. He is also chairman of NexPower Technology Corp. Sun is currently UMC’s chief operating officer, overseeing its 12-in. operations. He joined UMC in 1995 and has been responsible for the operation of several fabs and central R&D. Sun previously worked for Motorola in the Advanced Products Research and Development Laboratory (APRDL) for 10 years. He received his doctorate in materials science and engineering from Northwestern University. (7/16/2008)
OSA Redesigns Optics Educational Web Site
The Optical Society of America has redesigned its optics education Web site, OPTICSforKIDS.org, to include new and updated features such as an optics history timeline, a gallery of optical images, more than 30 experiments, a variety of tutorials and a career quiz. The Web site was created by a team of OSA student members working in conjunction with OSA and Florida State University’s MolecularExpressions.org management team. The site’s format and many of the external links and content for the timeline were provided by FSU. The new site combines content from the former OPTICSforKIDS and OPTICSforTEENS Web sites to provide one comprehensive and interactive resource for students, parents and educators. (7/16/2008)