Santa Clara, Calif.-based semiconductor capital equipment provider Applied Materials Inc. confirmed today it is ceasing development of both e-beam and laser mask pattern generation tools within its Etec Systems business after faltering sales in this market for a few years.

"The mask market has been a challenging one for a number of years and the economics of continuing to develop mask pattern generation systems no longer makes sense for Applied Materials," a spokesman told

This action impacts the company''s Mebes and ALTA 4700 Mask Patterning tools, but Applied "will continue to sell and support mask products," the spokesman noted.

At the same time, Applied "will continue to sell and service the Tetra II mask etch product, as well as the wet clean system and the Reticle SEM tools," he added.

Further, Applied will continue to take care of its existing pattern generation customers and support the installed base of systems in the field.

Etec personnel will be transitioned into Applied''s Talent Mobility program for retraining of job skills, to be put to use in other parts of the company.

The Etec business was acquired in January 2000 and has been struggling at least since 2003, when the company partly attributed missed guidance to a continued lack of mask writing equipment business.

At the time, Applied''s photomask production equipment unit had not spawned orders for two consecutive quarters and the company confirmed it was examining the situation.

The company said then that it was not a product issue, but rather that the mask pattern generation tool market was slow.

It was also believed Etec has experienced pressure from increased competition from its smaller competitor, Swedish laser pattern generation tool supplier Micronic Laser Systems AB.