Bob Conner Brings 20 Years of Semiconductor Experience to Post

Research Triangle Park, NC (May 11, 2005) - Newly founded Nextreme Thermal Solutions, a pioneer in embedded thermoelectric components, today announced the appointment of Bob Conner to lead the organization's marketing and business development functions.

Nextreme manufactures high-performance, solid-state components that operate as miniature heat pumps for cooling semiconductors and other electronics, and for fiber-optic laser control and thermal management of integrated optoelectronics.

Conner, a 20-year semiconductor industry veteran, was formerly the founding CEO of Symmorphix, an optical components manufacturer. Conner has also served in numerous corporate leadership capacities including: Managing Director of Corporate Marketing of AKT (a joint venture between Applied Materials and Komatsu); Vice President of Cirrus Logic's flat panel display graphics controllers business; and marketing management positions at Chips and Technologies and Intel. Conner holds a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering and materials science from Duke University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

"I am very pleased to have Bob join our management team," said Nextreme CEO Jesko von Windheim. "He has proven semiconductor industry experience, both nationally and internationally, as well as product management and start-up experience, all of which add up to effectively rounding out the leadership of this company."

"Nextreme helps customers deal with their increasing power densities resulting from ever shrinking circuit size, increasing clock rates, and the continuous demand for further integration," Conner said. "I am excited to join the team and looking forward to the opportunity to bring such a unique solution to market."

About Nextreme Thermal Solutions
Nextreme Thermal Solutions manufactures advanced thermoelectric components to address the escalating thermal management needs of the semiconductor, photonics, test-and-measurement and defense/aerospace industries. These high-performance solid-state components operate as miniature heat pumps for cooling semiconductors and other electronics, and for fiber-optic laser control and thermal management of integrated optoelectronics. Nextreme's unique thin-film superlattice technology provides an industry first - the embedding of an active cooling device directly into an integrated circuit's package. Other applications include converting heat into electricity for advanced power generation applications, thermal batteries and automotive energy management.

Nextreme raised $8 million in Series A financing in December 2004 to commercialize the technology that was under development for more than 10 years at RTI International (www.rti.org). Nextreme is located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. For more information, please visit www.NextremeThermal.com.

Media Contact:
Christa Miller
Gibbs & Soell, Inc.
(919) 870-5718
(919) 870-8911 (fax)
cmiller@gibbs-soell.com

Back to Portfolio News