austriamicrosystems Supports Silvaco SmartSpice Simulator Models

SANTA CLARA, Calif., — October 31, 2002

SmartSpice is a trademark of Silvaco Internationalaustriamicrosystems Business Unit Full Service Foundry and Silvaco International announced today the support of the SmartSpice circuit simulator with the latest spice-parameters for austriamicrosystems 0.35um technology platform. The supported processes include mixed-signal 0.35um CMOS, which is fully TSMC CMOS-compatible, as well as 0.35um BiCMOS and by the end of this year 0.35um Silicon Germanium.

The advantages of these advanced process technologies must be exploited in the design stage. Precise device models are essential for this task- in particular for the design of mixed analog/digital and RF circuits. Reliable parameters and models are basic requirements for first-time right silicon, short development times and lower costs.

"Accurate device models and a reliable simulation engine are the cornerstones of first-time right design, especially for mixed-signal and RF circuits. By providing our foundry customers with qualified SmartSpice models they can be confident that their simulation results will accurately reflect their final silicon," said Rainer Holzhaider, austriamicrosystems’ Director Foundry Services.

"austriamicrosystems is well known for their expertise in process characterization and accurate SPICE modeling for their proprietary BiCMOS,SiGe-BiCMOS and high-voltage processes" said Kenneth Brock, vice president of marketing for Silvaco. "The support of SmartSpice reflects austriamicrosystems’ policy of providing support over a wide range of platforms according to their customer’s needs and is another step forward for their tried and tested HIT-Kit (High performance Interface Tool-Kit) Design Environment."

austriamicrosystems Business Unit Full Service Foundry has successfully positioned itself in the mixed signal foundry market by offering a full service package including outstanding analog process characterization, advanced design kits with high precision simulation models, reliable analog and digital libraries, extensive design and layout support, Multi Project Wafer services, fast prototyping and full backend capabilities. This unique service package enables customers to significantly reduce time to market cycles for analog/mixed signal designs.

About austriamicrosystems

austriamicrosystems, Inc., with headquarters in Unterpremstätten near Graz (Austria), is one of the world's leading designers and manufacturers of custom specific mixed signal IC´s. This company has 820 employees and offices in 14 countries worldwide. Additional information can be found on the following Internet pages: www.austriamicrosystems.com.

For More Information Contact:

Kenneth Brock
VP Marketing
Silvaco International
(408) 654-4392
ken.brock@silvaco.com

Douglas Pattullo
Manager Technical Support
Business Unit Silicon Foundry
austriamicrosystems, Inc.
(408) 345-1790 x105
douglas.pattullo@austriamicrosystems.com

Sonja Pieber
Marketing Communications Manager
austriamicrosystems, AG
+43 (0)3136 500 5968
sonja.pieber@austriamicrosystems.com