IBM, Siemens and Toshiba alliance announces smallest fully-functional 256Mb
DRAM chip

Fishkill, N.Y., June 6, 1995 ... IBM, Siemens A.G. and Toshiba Corporation
today announced a major achievement in their joint semiconductor
development project -- reporting the smallest and fastest fully-functional
256-megabit Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) chip ever developed.

With a size of 286 square millimeters (less than one half inch) and a
memory access time of just 26 nanoseconds (26 billionths of a second), the
revolutionary new chip is at least 13 percent smaller and has an access
time that is nearly twice as fast as any chip from any other company.

DRAMs are pervasive, fingernail-size silicon devices that store electronic
data in products ranging from main- frame computers to home appliances. A
256Mb DRAM can hold more than 25,000 pages of double-spaced (for Europe
16,000 pages 1 1/2 line spaced) typewritten text, or the equivalent of the
entire works of William Shakespeare, plus those of Johann Wolfgang Goethe,
as well as the Manyoshu, the Kokinshu and the Tale of Genji. There still
would be enough bits left to store a typical edition of the International
Herald Tribune.

The smaller size and faster speed of the alliance device will help enable
future memory-hungry systems such as powerful personal computers and
workstations, as well as high-definition digital video, multimedia and
telecommunications systems. For OEM developers a smaller, faster chip
means improved overall system performance and a reduced footprint for
memory on printed circuit boards.

"Strategic alliances with world-class companies like Siemens and Toshiba
are a significant part of our business strategy," said Dr. Michael J.
Attardo, general manager of IBM's Microelectronics Division. "The alliance
put together a team of the best scientists, researchers and technicians
anywhere, and it delivered world-class results. But this is only the
beginning. The best is yet to come."

Jurgen Knorr, senior vice president of Siemens and head of its
Semiconductor Group said, "The joint development has demonstrated that the
best brains of the three companies can indeed create a leading-edge
technology. This enables the companies to stay ahead of the fast moving
progress in the semiconductor business even beyond the turn of the
century."

"This remarkable breakthrough in advanced research shows what can be
achieved by a dedicated alliance of companies that brings leading-edge
capabilities to a highly motivated program with clear aims," said Manaobu
Ohyama, senior vice president of Toshiba and group executive of its
semiconductor group. "The project and its achievements are clearly in the
forefront of many international projects for advanced semiconductors. I
congratulate all involved."

Researchers from the three companies have been working on the joint
development project since January, 1993 at IBM's advanced Semiconductor
Research and Development Center in Fishkill, New York. The innovative
device, featuring 0.25 micron CMOS process technology, is designed to
support any proposed Joint Electron Device Engineering Council (JEDEC)
standard for 256Mb DRAMs.

Details of the performance and technology aspects of the chip will be
presented at the 1995 Symposium on VLSI Technology, June 6-8, and at the
1995 Symposium on VLSI Circuits, June 8-10, both to be held in Kyoto,
Japan.

The three-way alliance that developed the device is an outgrowth of
separate, long-standing relationships among the companies. IBM and Siemens
currently work together in 16 Mb DRAM manufacturing. IBM, Siemens and
Toshiba are partners in 64Mb DRAM development, and a joint venture between
IBM Japan and Toshiba manufactures advanced color flat panel computer
displays. Toshiba and Siemens have been collaborating in various
semiconductor areas, including 1 Mb DRAMS, standard cells and gate
arrays.

All three companies have substantial experience in the field of sub-micron
semiconductor development. Most notably, each has demonstrated
technological leadership in 64Mb DRAMS, which is a key underpinning of the
256Mb chip.

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