IBM, Sony Corp. and Toshiba on Wednesday announced they have begun a new, five-year phase of their joint technology development alliance. A part of this fundamental co-research will be development of 32nm and thinner fabrication process.

“With Toshiba’s cutting-edge process technology and manufacturing capabilities, Sony’s various semiconductor technologies and deep knowledge of consumer markets and IBM's state-of-the-art material technology, we can anticipate breakthrough process technologies for the 32nm generation and beyond. Toshiba will apply these advances to assuring continued leadership in cutting-edge process technology and the accelerated development of essential devices for the age of ubiquitous connectivity,” said Masashi Muromachi, president and chief executive of the Semiconductor Company at Toshiba.

Over the last five years Sony Corp., Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., Toshiba and IBM have collaborated on the “Cell” microprocessor design, and its underlying SOI (silicon-on-insulator) process technologies in 90nm and 65nm.

As part of the new broad semiconductor research and development alliance, the three companies will work together on fundamental research related to advanced process technologies at 32nm and beyond. The agreement will help enable the three companies to more rapidly investigate, identify and commercialize new technologies for consumer and other applications.

Research and development will take place at IBM’s Thomas J. Watson research center in Yorktown Heights, N.Y., the Center for Semiconductor Research at Albany NanoTech, and at IBM’s 300mm manufacturing facility in East Fishkill.