Infineon Technologies Joins the X Initiative Successfully Fabricates 130-nm X Architecture Test Silicon MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Feb. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The X Initiative today announced that leading European chip maker, Infineon Technologies(NYSE: IFX; FSE: IFX), has joined the semiconductor supply-chain consortium. Infineon has tested its X Architecture manufacturing readiness with the successful fabrication of a 130-nm test chip and plans to further validate production designs using theinnovative interconnect architecture in 2004. The X Architecture represents a new way of orienting a chip's microscopic interconnecting wires using diagonal pathways, as well as the traditional right-angle, or "Manhattan," configuration. By enabling designs with significantly less wire and fewer vias (the connectors between wiring layers), the X Architecture can provide significant improvements in chip performance, power consumption and cost. Infineon fabricated the X Architecture test chip at itsCorbeil-Essonnes facility using its 130-nm production flow and leveraged the technology of other X Initiative members. Cadence Design Systems provided the test structure design, DuPont Photomasks and the Infineon maskhouse produced the X Architecture masks, and Nikon's equipment was employed for photolithography. Infineon's successful test chip reconfirms the readiness of the design-to-wafer supply chain established through open collaboration among the X Initiative members. "The X Architecture represents an innovative interconnect architecture that promises to boost the performance potential of our chips," said Infineon's Vice President of Technology Development, Josef Winnerl. "With our products fueling the world's high-end wireless communications devices, we're constantly looking for new ways to improve chip performance, reduce overall power consumption and cut costs. We plan to leverage the benefits of X Architecture implementation in 2004." The pre-production phase of the design-to-silicon roadmap for the X Architecture -- laid out by the X Initiative in 2002 -- was completed in October 2003 with the announcement of functional silicon results by Toshiba. More recently, UMC became the first pure-play foundry to join the X Initiative anddeclared its availability to accept X Architecture designs for fabrication at the 180-nm, 150-nm and 130-nm process nodes. The focus of the X Initiative's collaborative supply-chain preparation is now to enable broad adoption of the X Architecture forproduction manufacturing at both leading-edge (130-nm, 90-nm) and future (65-nm, 45-nm and below) manufacturing nodes. First production chips are expected in 2004. "We welcome Infineon, our newest member, as we progress toward broad adoption of the XArchitecture," said Aki Fujimura, X Initiative steering group member and CTO, new business incubation at Cadence Design Systems, Inc. "Infineon's 130-nm test chip result primes the company to harness the proven benefits of the X Architecture for its current products and next-generation devices." About the X Architecture The X Architecture, the first production-worthy approach to the pervasive use of diagonal interconnect, reduces the total interconnect, or wiring, on a chip by more than 20 percent and via-counts by more than 30 percent, resulting in simultaneous improvements in chip performance, power and cost. For the past 20 years, chip design has been primarily based on the de facto industry standard "Manhattan" architecture, named for its right-angle interconnects resembling a city-street grid. The X Architecture rotates the primary direction of the interconnect in the fourth and fifth metal layers by 45 degrees from a Manhattan architecture. The new architecture maintains compatibility with existing cell libraries, memory cells, compilers and IP cores by preserving the Manhattan geometry of metal layers one through three. About the X Initiative The X Initiative, a group of leading companies from throughout the semiconductor industry, is chartered with accelerating the availability and fabrication of the X Architecture, a revolutionary interconnect architecture based on the pervasive use of diagonal routing. The X Initiative's five-year mission is to provide an independent source of education about the X Architecture, to facilitate support and fabrication of the X Architecture through the semiconductor industry supply chain, and to survey usage of the X Architecture to track its adoption. Representing leaders spanning the entire design-to-silicon supply chain, X Initiative members include: Applied Materials, Inc.; ARM; Artisan Components, Inc.; ASML Netherlands B.V.; Cadence Design Systems, Inc.; Dai Nippon Printing (DNP); DuPont Photomasks, Inc.; Etec Systems, Inc., an Applied Materials, Inc. company; GDA Technologies, Inc.; HPL Technologies, Inc.; Hoya Corporation; IN2FAB Technology Ltd.; Infineon Technologies AG; JEOL, Ltd.; KLA-Tencor Corporation; Leica Microsystems AG; Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.; MicroArk Co. Ltd.; Monterey Design Systems, Inc.; Nikon Corporation; NuFlare Technology Inc.; PDF Solutions, Inc.; Photronics, Inc.; Prolific Inc.; RUBICAD Corporation; Sagantec; Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.; Silicon Logic Engineering, Inc.; SiliconMap, LLC.; Silicon Valley Research Inc.; STMicroelectronics; Sycon Design, Inc.; Tensilica, Inc.; Toppan Printing Co.; Toshiba Corporation; Trecenti Technologies, Inc.; UMC; Virage Logic, Inc.; Virtual Silicon Technology, Inc.; and Zygo Corporation. Membership is opento all companies throughout the semiconductor supply chain. Materials can be found at http://www.xinitiative.org/. About Infineon Infineon Technologies AG, Munich, Germany, offers semiconductor and system solutions for the automotive and industrial sectors, for applications in the wired communications markets, secure mobile solutions as well as memory products. With a global presence, Infineon operates in the US from San Jose, CA, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore and in Japan from Tokyo. In fiscal year 2002 (ending September), the company achieved sales of Euro 5.21 billion with about 30,400 employees worldwide. Infineon is listed on the DAX index of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange. Further information is avail able at http://www.infineon.com/ . Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements This release contains forward-looking statements (including, without limitation, information regarding semiconductor design, production and performance improvements resulting from the X Architecture, the compatibility of the X Architecture with current technology, the future success of X Architecture technology and the ability of certain of the X Initiative members to support the X Architecture) that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause the results of X Initiative members and other events to differ materially from managements' current expectations. Actual results and events may differ materially due to a number of factors including, among others: future strategic decisions made by the X Initiative members; failure of the X Architecture to enable the production of designs that are feasible and competitive with current designs or future alternatives; future strategic decisions made by X Initiative members or others that inhibit the development of the X Architecture; demand for advanced semiconductors that are developed using the X Architecture; cost feasibility of the production of semiconductors designed using the X Architecture; and the rapid pace of technological change in the semiconductor industry. The matters discussed in this press release also involve risks and uncertainties described in the most recent filings of the X Initiative members with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The X Initiative members, individually or collectively, assume no obligation to update the forward-looking information contained in this release. DATASOURCE: Infineon Technologies AG CONTACT: Sherrie Gutierrez of MCA, +1-650-968-8900, or , for Infineon Technologies AG Web site: http://www.xinitiative.org/ Web site: http://www.infineon.com/

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