During a conference here on Tuesday, an executive from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC) insisted the company is successfully ramping up its 0.13-micron technology, although it is still delayed and wrestling with the process based on low-k dielectrics. "We would be the first to admit that the transition from 0.18- to 0.13-micron technology has been challenging," said Ed Ross, president of TSMC's U.S. subsidiary, based in San Jose. "TSMC is the only pure-play foundry--I repeat the only foundry--that is fully qualified at 0.13-micron technology," Ross said during a keynote address at the company's annual Technology Symposium. TSMC insisted that its 0.13-micron process is healthy amid growing concerns that the Hsinchu-based silicon foundry giant is still experiencing yield problems with the technology, thereby causing shipment delays among its chip customers, sources said. And rumors are running rampant that Broadcom, Nvidia, and other TSMC customers are unhappy with the company's 0.13-micron chip yields, according to sources and analysts.