14 DAY TRIAL // Micron Technology has just announced that it has joined Nanya for a DRAM joint-venture and a partnership in research and development on the 50-nanometer production node. The announcement puts an end to the rumors that have circulated since last month.
The two companies jointly stated that they are expecting to sign an agreement in the next few months for a joint program in DRAM development and design at sub-50-nanometer nodes.
"Partnering with Nanya would be significant to Micron as we continue to drive toward the most cost-effective ways to grow and innovate. Nanya has proven its capabilities to be a leader in manufacturing technology and is strategically located near our growing customer base," said Mark Durcan, Micron's President and Chief Operating Officer.
The new partnership will have quite an impact on the DRAM industry. Nanya is currently involved in a research and development partnership with Germany-based Qimonda DRAM chip manufacturer. More than that, the two companies have formed a joint-venture in Taiwan, dubbed Inotera, that is comprised of two 300-mm fabs.
"We look forward to partnering with Micron, a proven innovative technology leader in the DRAM industry. The partnership with Micron will combine the strengths of both companies, mutually benefit the competitiveness of both companies and bring cost-effective solutions to our customers," said Dr. Jih Lien, Nanya's President.
The joint venture between Nanya and Micron will be a blow to Qimonda. The latter is manufacturing its memory products using a "special" process, called "trench", which is less popular on the DRAM market than the regular, "stack" process. Industry experts say that the trench process has no future, because it scales less well as compared to the stack method.
Micron's announcement comes shortly after Nanya vehemently dismissed the rumors about forming a joint-venture with Micron. "The DRAM industry is in such a difficult situation right now, so there are a lot of rumors. This is just one of those rumors and it is not true," said Pai Pei-lin, a vice president and spokesman of Nanya Technology last week.