Infineon Technologies Announces Volume Production of 256Mbit Mobile-RAM, a New Member of its Low Power DRAM Family for Handheld Applications

Munich/Germany – August 5, 2002 – Infineon Technologies (FSE/NYSE:IFX) today announced it has broadened its portfolio of Low-Power DRAMs and is now in volume production of 256Mbit Mobile-RAM memory chips, which are available in chip-size Fine-pitch Ball Grid Array (FBGA) and Thin Small Outline packages (TSOP).

Due to its 50 percent smaller footprint and reduced power consumption compared to both standard SDRAM and simpler, reduced voltage low-power DRAM, Infineon’s Mobile-RAM is ideally suited for applications in handheld electronics. Power consumption of Mobile-RAM in stand-by mode is less than half of a conventional DRAM. Now available in both 128Mbit and 256Mbit density, Mobile-RAM is designed to serve as main memory in systems such as PDAs, Smart-Phones, Web-Pads and Digital-Cameras.

Mobile-RAM operates at 2.5V core voltage and 1.8V (or 2.5V) for the I/O in contrast to conventional 3.3V SDRAM. Additional power management features like Temperature Compensated Self Refresh (TCSR) and Partial Array Self Refresh (PASR) further reduce power consumption significantly. Partial Array Self Refresh limits the self-refresh operation only to parts of the memory that contain data. Temperature Compensated Self-Refresh adjusts the refresh rate to the temperature of the device, the lower the temperature the lower the refresh rate, and thus additional power savings.

Compared to DRAMs mounted in the standard TSOP package, the footprint of the Mobile-RAM is reduced by more than half when using the 8mm x 12mm Chip-Scale-Package (CSP). The Fine-pitch Ball Grid Array used for the Mobile-RAM is based on Infineon’s proprietary wire-bonding Board-on-Chip technology (BOC) which combines the rigidity of the inexpensive lead-frame bonding techniques with the space-saving features of CSP.

“This new 256Mbit device is the second product on our Mobile-RAM roadmap which will soon be extended to the 512Mbit generation,” said Dr. Ernst Strasser, Director of Marketing for Graphics and Specialty DRAM at Infineon. “The Mobile-RAM is one more example of Infineon’s strategy to offer products that meet growing demand for specialty DRAM in the information and communication market segment.”

Infineon recently announced a cooperative development program with Micron Technology for CellularRAM, a specialty DRAM to complement Infineon’s wireless memory portfolio. CellularRAM is targeted at replacing SRAM in next-generation mobile phones by providing a high capacity, high bandwidth and power efficient memory solution at a very attractive cost/bit ratio.

The world market for Personal Digital Assistants, the largest of the target markets for the Mobile-RAM, is around 16 million PDA units in 2002, and is projected by International Data Corp. to grow approximately 36 percent per year to 53 million units in 2005.

Price and Availability

Infineon began deliveries of 256 Mobile-RAM to manufacturers of handheld systems in the second quarter of 2002. In small volumes, the components are priced at US$ 15.00 each. Volume pricing is available on request. Additional information about Infineon’s Mobile-RAM can be found at www.infineon.com/mobile-ram

Infineon Technologies AG, Munich, offers semiconductor and system solutions for applications in the wired and wireless communications markets, for security systems and smartcards, for the automotive and industrial sectors, as well as memory products. A global player, Infineon operates in the USA from San Jose, California, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore and in Japan from Tokyo. Employing about 33,800 people worldwide, the company achieved sales of EUR 5.67 billion in fiscal 2001 (ending September). Infineon is listed on the DAX index of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol IFX. Further information is available at www.infineon.com.