French companies claim chip lead

ST Microelectronics (formerly SGS Thomsen) and the Bull Groupe said today they had made a breakthrough in chip technology. The surprise announcement (both companies are French) is related to the European Eureka project. The so-called "Deep Submicron CMOS Process with Advanced Computer Application" is part of an operation developed by the European Union, it emerged. The EU (European Union) classification number is T505. It is a single system on a chip, but Europe is far behind the US in such systems. However, Groupe Bull said it would use the semiconductor system in its mainframes, which are pervasive in the EU, especially in France and Germany. ®