Etec Corporation of Hayward, California, was formed in 1970 as a producer of scanning electron microscopes, but later became a producer of electron beam lithography tools, and SEM manufacture was discontinued. Etec later merged with ATEQ of Beaverton, Oregon, which manufacturedlaser beam lithography tools. The combined company was named "Etec Systems" and offered a portfolio of lithography relying on both electron and laser beams. These products targeted the photomasks and reticles used in integrated circuit manufacturing. In 1999 the Beaverton, Oregon portion of the company was moved to Hillsboro, Oregon. Etec was purchased by Applied Materials in 2000, and organized within the Applied Materials corporation as an autonomous business group. In 2000, Etec employed 600 workers in Hayward. In 2002, Applied Materials announced it was reviewing a plan to shut down Etec. Etec Systems was absorbed into its parent company Applied Materials in October 2005.
Originally formed in 1970, Etec produced scanning electron microscopes of very high quality; many instruments are still working well 30 years later. Designed by Nelson Yew, the Autoscan has produced excellent images, outperforming modern instruments subject to digital noise and other problems. As the MEBES became the major product, the company was bought by Perkin Elmer, and the SEM manufacture was discontinued.
Some time after 2002 the product line that constituted the original Etec offering was discontinued. Most MEBES III tools have been decommissioned in favour of Etec CORE and ALTA laser lithography tools, which have a faster throughput and use a more environmentally friendly IP3500 type resist which does not require a solvent-based development process. However, there continue to be a number of MEBES III and IV in use throughout the world currently.
With the purchase of Etec in 2005, the Etec line of laser-based lithography tools continues to be developed and produced by Applied Materials. A Swedish firm Micronic AB and a German firm Heidelberg Instruments is a competitor in laser-based mask-making solutions. However, the demand for Applied Material's laser lithography tool has allowed it to be still be the most widely available and used tool in the photomask industry.
