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The economics of flexible integrated circuit manufacturing technology

  • Studies in International Competition in Semiconductors
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Abstract

An economic frameword for evaluting flexible integrated circuit manufacturing technologies is developed as an alternative to the capacity races that appear to have played a major role in the decline of the U.S. IC industry. Economic advantages of flexible IC manufacturing technologies (such as cluster tools and multiprocessors) may include reductions in units costs at low output volumes, inexpensive increases in the diversity of IC products manufactured, and acceleration of the speed of new product introduction. The consequences of these developments for semiconductor equipment producers, IC manufacturers, and electronic system producers are examined.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Economic Policy Research, Stanford University, 100 Encina Commons/6015, Stanford, CA, U.S.A.

    W. Edward Steinmueller

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  1. W. Edward Steinmueller
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Research support from the Center for Integrated Systems, Stanford University sponsored by DARPA, the United States Air Force/TI MMST Program and the Center for Economic Policy Research, Stanford University is gratefully acknowledged. I have profited from comments by Paul Losleben, Philip Webre, Krishna Saraswat, F. M. Scherer, and Sam Wood.

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Steinmueller, W.E. The economics of flexible integrated circuit manufacturing technology. Review of Industrial Organization 7, 327–349 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00353399

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