Compliance with Emissions Standards Dependent on Innovative Electronics - Infineon Sets the Benchmark for Tomorrow’s Automotive Microcontrollers

Neubiberg, Germany – January, 2008 – When the EURO5 standard comes into force in 2009, nitrogen oxide emissions must be a quarter less than today’s figure. Cars with gasoline engines will be allowed to churn out no more than 60 mg/km, while emissions from diesel engines must be reduced by 28 percent to 180 mg/km. For soot particles too, the threshold set by today’s EURO4 standard will be slashed by 80 percent, from 25 mg/km to 5 mg/km.

High-performance microcontrollers that regulate engine activity and determine the ideal air/fuel mix for each ignition cycle are playing a major part in delivering these improvements. Infineon Technologies AG (FSE/NYSE: IFX), Europe’s leading chip manufacturer for automotive electronics, has now unveiled the product family AUDO FUTURE for the EURO6-compliant cars that will hit the market as of 2014. By then, nitrogen oxide emissions from cars with diesel engines will have to be 55 percent lower again – a feat that can only be achieved with the backing of greater computing power and innovative piezo systems for direct fuel injection. These systems inject fuel in as many as 16 individual doses at every cylinder stroke. To handle this challenging task, AUDO FUTURE microcontrollers boast twice as much main memory and a third more computing power than their contemporary counterparts. 416 ports, a raft of analog/digital converters and two processors keep them firmly in control of every aspect of engine management.

Jochen Hanebeck, responsible for these microcontrollers at Infineon, said: “We will be launching different versions of AUDO FUTURE on the market at the right time. We will have the right microcontroller for every car in future – be it a diesel, gasoline or hybrid model.”

Infineon is Europe’s leading provider of microcontrollers for automotive electronics applications. On average, 25 Infineon microcontrollers are fitted in every new car these days. Statistically, every second automobile in Europe and every third car made worldwide contains an Infineon microcontroller for diesel or gas engine control systems, which is used to control functions such as injection, ignition and exhaust gas recirculation.

Further technical information on the Infineon AUDO FUTURE family is available at www.infineon.com/audo-future

Further information on Infineon’s microcontroller and automotive product portfolio is available at www.infineon.com/microcontrollers and www.infineon.com/automotive