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A History of Innovation

Since 1980, Lam Research has played a key role in contributing to the extraordinary pace of innovation in the semiconductor industry.

Our market-leading products and services enable our customers to build smaller, faster, more powerful, and more power-efficient electronic devices.

Scroll down to see how our company and the industry have changed throughout the years.

Company Milestones

Industry Milestones

The 1980s

1980

  1. 1980 - company: Company founded by David K. Lam in Santa Clara, California
  2. 1980 - industry: Wafer size:150 mm
  3. 1980 - industry: Global semiconductor sales topped $14 billion
  4. 1980 - industry: DRAM density:64 Kb

1981

  1. 1981 - company: Introduced first product, the AutoEtch
  2. 1981 - industry: FCC approved cell phones for commercial development

1982

  1. 1982 - company: Roger Emerick appointed as CEO
  2. 1982 - industry: Technology node:1.5 µm
  3. 1982 - industry: Number of transistors in a typical microprocessor:134,000

1984

  1. 1984 - company: Lam became public as LRCX

1985

  1. 1985 - company: Opened first offices in Europe
  2. 1985 - company: Fiscal annual revenue: ~$34 million

1986

  1. 1986 - industry: IBM introduced its first laptop computer, the PC Convertible

1987

  1. 1987 - company: Relocated headquarters to Fremont, California
  2. 1987 - company: Introduced Rainbow® etch system
  3. 1987 - company: Introduced first MSSD system, Concept One® PECVD

1988

  1. 1988 - company: Invented single-wafer spin clean technology
  2. 1988 - industry: DRAM density:4 Mb

1989

  1. 1989 - company: Opened first office in S. Korea
  2. 1989 - industry: Technology node:0.8 µm
  3. 1989 - industry: Number of transistors in a typical microprocessor:1.2 million

The 1990s

1990

  1. 1990 - company: Fiscal annual revenue:~$140 million
  2. 1990 - industry: Wafer size:200 mm
  3. 1990 - company: Introduced SP Series spin clean systems

1992

  1. 1992 - company: Opened offices in Taiwan and Singapore

  2. 1992 - company: Introduced first Transformer Coupled Plasma™ conductor etch products

1993

  1. 1993 - company: Released Concept Two® ALTUS® CVD tungsten system
  2. 1993 - industry: Number of transistors in a typical microprocessor:3.1 million
  3. 1993 - company: Opened process development center in Japan

1994

  1. 1994 - company: Established presence in China
  2. 1994 - industry: DRAM density:16 Mb
  3. 1994 - industry: Global semiconductor sales surpassed $100 billion

1995

  1. 1995 - company: Introduced first Dual Frequency Confined™ dielectric etch product
  2. 1995 - industry: Technology node:350 nm
  3. 1995 - industry: Microsoft introduced Windows 95
  4. 1995 - company: Fiscal annual revenue:~$1.0 billion

1996

  1. 1996 - company: Introduced SPEED® HDP-CVD system
  2. 1996 - industry: 25th anniversary of the microprocessor

1997

  1. 1997 - company: Jim Bagley appointed as CEO
  2. 1997 - industry: Number of transistors in a typical microprocessor:7.5 million

1998

  1. 1998 - company: Introduced Lam's Core Values
  2. 1998 - company: Announced SABRE® ECD system

1999

  1. 1999 - industry: Technology node:180 nm

The 2000s

2000

  1. 2000 - company: Announced 2300® etch platform
  2. 2000 - industry: Wafer size:300 mm
  3. 2000 - company: Launched VECTOR® PECVD system
  4. 2000 - industry: DRAM density:128 Mb
  5. 2000 - company: Opened office in India
  6. 2000 - industry: Sony's Playstation 2 went on sale
  7. 2000 - company: Established Lam Research Foundation
  8. 2000 - company: Fiscal annual revenue:~$1.2 billion

2001

  1. 2001 - industry: Technology node:130 nm
  2. 2001 - industry: Apple introduced the iPod music player

2002

  1. 2002 - company: Opened Tualatin, Oregon, campus

2003

  1. 2003 - company: Launched Da Vinci® spin clean product

2004

  1. 2004 - company: Introduced first-generation Kiyo® and Flex® etch products
  2. 2004 - industry: Technology node:90 nm
  3. 2004 - company: Introduced ALTUS® tungsten barrier CVD system
  4. 2004 - industry: Global semiconductor sales topped $210 billion

2005

  1. 2005 - company: Launched SOLA® UVTP film treatment system
  2. 2005 - industry: Number of transistors in a typical microprocessor:291 million
  3. 2005 - company: Steve Newberry appointed as CEO
  4. 2005 - industry: DRAM density:512 Mb
  5. 2005 - company: Fiscal annual revenue: ~$1.5 billion

2006

  1. 2006 - company: Acquired Bullen Semiconductor, now Silfex, Inc.
  2. 2006 - industry: Technology node:65 nm

2007

  1. 2007 - company: Shipped first Syndion® system for through-silicon via etch
  2. 2007 - industry: Apple unveiled the iPhone
  3. 2007 - company: Introduced DV-Prime® spin clean system
  4. 2007 - industry: Number of transistors in a typical microprocessor:820 million
  5. 2007 - company: Launched Coronus® plasma bevel clean system

2008

  1. 2008 - company: Acquired SEZ AG, now Lam Research AG
  2. 2008 - industry: DRAM density:1 Gb
  3. 2008 - company: Introduced GAMMA® GxT® and GAMMA® G400® strip systems

The 2010s

2010

  1. 2010 - company: Announced SABRE® 3D ECD system for wafer-level packaging
  2. 2010 - industry: Technology node:32 nm
  3. 2010 - company: Fiscal annual revenue:~$2.1 billion
  4. 2010 - industry: Global semiconductor sales reached ~$300 billion

2011

  1. 2011 - company: Established Corus, now Lam Manufacturing Korea

2012

  1. 2012 - company: Martin Anstice appointed as CEO
  2. 2012 - company: Acquired Novellus Systems

2013

  1. 2013 - industry: ~64 billion semiconductors sold in the U.S., or ~200 chips per person
  2. 2013 - industry: DRAM density:4 Gb

2014

  1. 2014 - company: Introduced product suite for 3D NAND: ALTUS® Max ICEFill™ W-CVD, VECTOR® Strata® PECVD, Flex® F Series dielectric etch
  2. 2014 - industry: Technology node:14 nm
  3. 2014 - company: Introduced solutions for multiple patterning: VECTOR® , Kiyo® F Series conductor etch products
  4. 2014 - industry: Number of transistors in a typical microprocessor:4.3 billion
  5. 2014 - company: Announced first manufacturing-worthy atomic layer etch: Kiyo® F Series system
  6. 2014 - industry: Wearable tech became mainstream

2015

  1. 2015 - company: Fiscal annual revenue:~$5.3 billion
  2. 2015 - industry: 50th anniversary of Moore's Law

2016

  1. 2016 - company: Opened the Lam Research Dr. Richard A. Gottscho Laboratory in Fremont
  2. 2016 - industry: Technology node:10 nm
  3. 2016 - company: Launched Lam Research Capital

2017

  1. 2017 - company: Acquired Coventor, Inc.
  2. 2017 - industry: 3D NAND:64 layers

2018

  1. 2018 - company: Tim Archer appointed as CEO
  2. 2018 - industry: ~1 trillion semiconductors shipped worldwide

2019

  1. 2019 - company: Achieved new industry benchmark for etch system uptime
  2. 2019 - industry: 5G began deploying worldwide

2020

  1. 2020 - company: Lam's 40th Year Anniversary
  2. 2020 - industry: Remote work and learn trends drove electronics demand
  3. 2020 - company: Announced Sense.i™ plasma etch system
  4. 2020 - company: Developed new dry resist technology with ASML and IMEC

2021

  1. 2021 - company: Set goal to achieve carbon net zero by 2050
  2. 2021 - industry: 50th anniversary of the microprocessor
  3. 2021 - company: Opened manufacturing facility in Malaysia

2022

  1. 2022 - company: Opened Korea Technology Center