Client & Alumni News

Texas Instruments Acquires CICLON Semiconductor; Strengthens Analog Power Management Portfolio

February 11, 2009–Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) (NYSE: TXN) today acquired Bethlehem, PA-based CICLON Semiconductor Device Corporation, a leading designer of high-frequency, high-efficiency power management semiconductors. The acquisition expands TI’s capability to improve energy efficiency in today’s end-equipment designs, including high-power computing and server systems.

CICLON Semiconductor Device Corporation (pronounced See-Clone) is a fabless provider of high-frequency, high-efficiency power MOSFET and RF LDMOS and semiconductor solutions for high-performance applications.

Designers who incorporate CICLON’s state-of-the-art power management technology can double a power system’s operating frequency and achieve greater than 90-percent power efficiency in a footprint up to 20-percent smaller than today’s power supply. The company’s metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) technology, known as NexFETTM technology, attains these performance and size improvements by delivering a dramatic reduction in gate charge.

“Combining CICLON’s technology and expertise with TI’s industry-leading power management semiconductor portfolio gives us a tremendous advantage when solving customers’ complex power design requirements,” said Steve Anderson, senior vice president for TI’s Power Management business unit. “The acquisition also opens doors for us to engage in the high-current power MOSFET space, viewed by industry analysts as a multi-billion dollar market opportunity.”

Mark Granahan, chief executive officer of CICLON Semiconductor, said, “Combining CICLON’s talent and technology with TI’s high-performance analog portfolio, global sales force and power management expertise will give equipment designers quicker access to proven power supply solutions that meet or exceed the most stringent industry regulations and requirements, such as 90-percent plus efficiency.”