Axcelis Ships First Optima HD Imax to Major Asian Memory Chipmaker
Shipment of industry's first molecular ion implanter is a milestone for ground-breaking technology

BEVERLY, Mass. — October 31, 2006— Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: ACLS) today announced the first shipment of its innovative Optima HD, powered by Imax^TM, to one of the world's largest memory chipmakers. This shipment marks a significant milestone by offering the industry's first implanter to deliver the power of molecular implants for both advanced memory and logic devices . This latest addition to Axcelis' Optima HD product line enables users to dramatically increase productivity and shorten low energy, high dose implant process times by implanting molecules rather than atoms.

"This first Optima HD Imax shipment is a major step forward in the execution of our Optima HD strategy. It is clear that customer momentum is building and that we are satisfying a genuine market need," said Mary Puma, chairman and CEO of Axcelis. "The Optima HD Imax offers convincing productivity and yield advantages - truly enabling state-of-the-art 45nm and 32nm device manufacturing and generating widespread excitement among our customer base ."  

The Optima HD Imax implants molecules of B₁₈ H₂₂ , which includes 18 boron atoms, resulting in higher productivity than users can achieve with traditional approaches that implant one atom at a time. It delivers precise implants using Axcelis' advanced spot beam technology, resulting in exceptional implant uniformity and repeatability, while avoiding the risk of energy contamination associated with beam deceleration. The resulting boost in productivity enables chipmakers to adopt a number of emerging trends, including dual poly gate applications for advanced memory devices and shallower junctions in logic chips.

Since the late 1990s, Axcelis has been developing molecular source technology and its potential for extending low energy implant technology.   The company is using ClusterIon^TM source technology from SemEquip, a manufacturer of ion sources and ion delivery systems for the OEM implanter market.

About Axcelis Technologies, Inc.
Axcelis Technologies, Inc., headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts, provides innovative, high-productivity solutions for the semiconductor industry. Axcelis is dedicated to developing enabling process applications through the design, manufacture and complete life cycle support of ion implantation, rapid thermal processing, and cleaning and curing systems. Axcelis Technologies has key product development centers in Beverly, Massachusetts, as well as in Saijo, Japan, through its joint venture, SEN Corporation, an SHI and Axcelis Company. The company's Internet address is: www.axcelis.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes certain statements, known as "forward-looking statements," which express the current expectations of Axcelis management. Product manufacturing and delivery issues, customer order push-outs or cancellations and product performance could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated as expressed in this press release. These risks and other risk factors relating to Axcelis are described more fully in the most recent Form 10-K filed by Axcelis and in other filings from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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