Toumaz Technology Limited signs manufacturing agreement with Infineon Technologies AG

Toumaz Technology Limited signs manufacturing agreement with Infineon Technologies AG
Toumaz Technology Limited has signed an agreement with Infineon to use Infineon’s advanced 130 nanometre RF CMOS process to manufacture Toumaz’s Generation 1 and Generation 2 Sensium chips. Toumaz is the first external customer to be offered the use of this process and is planning to tape out the first prototype chip in mid January. As part of the agreement Infineon will license certain IP, predominantly digital blocks and cores, to Toumaz for integration into the Sensium devices.

The 130 nanometre RF CMOS process which is currently being run at Infineon’s Altis Semiconductor fabrication facility in Essonne, France, is expected to be replicated at another European site.

The Sensium is an ultra low power sensor interface and transceiver for applications in the medical and professional healthcare area. The device achieves ultra low power through the use of patented AMx™ technology for signal processing and includes a reconfigurable sensor interface and RF transceiver block. The Advanced Mixed Signal (AMx™) approach to system-on-chip integration features sub-threshold CMOS analog signal processing coupled with digital closed-loop control for self-calibration and re-tuning. Using a proven RF foundry maximises the predictability and accuracy of the sub-threshold analog processing blocks.

Thomas Pollakowski, VP and General Manager of Infineon’s business unit ‘Connectivity” explained: “Infineon offers over three decades of experience in development, design, and manufacturing of world class communication systems. With the newly invoked foundry program we are granting external customers access to our RF-CMOS, Bipolar, and SiGe process technology which have been concertedly developed with available application specific IP. With Toumaz we have found a partner with a very exciting application allowing Infineon to demonstrate its foundry capabilities.”

Commenting on the agreement, Keith Errey, CEO of Toumaz Technology, said, “As a fabless semiconductor business, managing the supply side is critical to our success. Having Infineon as a foundry partner not only provides access to the best available semiconductor manufacturing technology for our applications but also offers a wealth of expertise and back-end support, thus ensuring faster times to market and lower costs for Toumaz.”

This is a very strong validation of the Toumaz technology and the strength of our design team. An early return in advance of actual product sales is good news for our investors and confirms management’s view of the attractiveness and value of the low power technology.”

About Toumaz Technology Ltd.
Toumaz Technology Limited is a developer of advanced RF, analogue and mixed signal semiconductors. The focus of the business is low power devices based on the company’s proprietary AMx™ (Advanced Mixed Signal) technology which addresses the needs of lower power consumption for mobile and wirelessly connected systems.

About Infineon
Infineon Technologies AG, Munich, Germany, offers semiconductor and system solutions for automotive, industrial and multimarket sectors, for applications in communication, as well as memory products. With a global presence, Infineon operates through its subsidiaries in the US from San Jose, CA, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore and in Japan from Tokyo. In fiscal year 2005 (ending September), the company achieved sales of Euro 6.8 billion with about 35,600 employees worldwide. Infineon is listed on the DAX index of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: IFX). Further information is available at www.infineon.com.
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