Diodes Inc. Announces Alliance with Microsemi Corp.

    WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.--Aug. 14, 2001--Diodes Inc. today announced it has signed an agreement with Microsemi Corp. that will allow Diodes to license Microsemi's advanced, 3-terminal Powermite(R)3 surface-mount package.
    Microsemi Corp., headquartered in Irvine, Calif., is a market-leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of analog, mixed-signal and discrete semiconductors, and Diodes Inc. is a leading manufacturer and supplier of high-quality discrete semiconductor products.
    Under the terms of the agreement, Microsemi will license its patented Powermite(R)3 packaging to Diodes, who will manufacture the devices at its state-of-the-art facilities in Mainland China. The agreement allows Microsemi to broaden industry acceptance of the advanced Powermite technology by having a second source, while allowing Diodes to build on its existing range of industry-leading diode, rectifier and protection devices, beginning with performance Schottky and ultra-fast rectifiers.
    The Powermite(R)3 compact packaging design offers significant advantages over larger and higher profile D-PAK technology, providing exceptionally low thermal resistance and high power density, which are key benefits in power management and DC to DC conversion applications. In addition, the low profile of the Powermite(R)3, which is roughly a third of the size of comparable devices, offers a practical alternative to available chip scale packaging techniques used in high-density packaging designs.
    Targeted applications for the Powermite(R)3 include notebooks, DC to DC converters, set-top boxes and game consoles, and mobile communication and hand-held computing devices, including PDA's that require efficient power management, effective transient voltage protection and dependable battery charge protection.
    "Microsemi looks to work with partners capable of helping us capitalize on the unique strengths of our patented Powermite(TM) packaging," said Manuel Lynch, vice president of marketing and business development at Microsemi. "This agreement will allow us to leverage Diodes' manufacturing excellence, strong customer service reputation and diverse customer base to further exploit the numerous commercial applications that exist for our advanced technology."
    As part of the alliance and licensing agreement, Microsemi will receive a royalty for each product sold by Diodes as well as rights to purchase Powermite(R)3 products manufactured at Diodes' low cost manufacturing facility in Mainland China. An initial packaging order was placed with Microsemi totaling approximately $1 million to start production of several new products to be offered by Diodes.
    "We are delighted to announce this agreement with Microsemi," said Mark King, vice president of sales and marketing of Diodes Inc. "Such strategic relationships provide Diodes the opportunity to build our pipeline of new discrete devices incorporating next-generation technologies. This allows us to both broaden our product range and to add value to our existing customer relationships with market leading manufacturers. We believe this agreement with Microsemi represents the first step in what could become a more expansive, mutually beneficial relationship between the two companies."