Net sales for the quarter were $46.2 million, a 5.0 percent decrease from $48.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2001, and 37.1 percent less than the first quarter of 2001 net sales of $73.5 million. Shipments for the quarter were $33.8 million, 31.7 percent less than $49.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2001, and 72.4 percent less than the first quarter of 2001 shipments of $122.6 million.

Net loss for the first quarter of 2002 was $25.8 million, or $(0.70) per share, compared to net loss of $67.1 million, or $(1.81) per share, for the fourth quarter of 2001, and net loss of $49.6 million, or $(1.36) per share, for the first quarter of 2001.

Gross margin for the first quarter of 2002 was 16.1 percent, affected by continued factory underutilization and APB 16 inventory charges. Gross margin would have been 28.1 percent without the APB 16 inventory charges. In the fourth quarter of 2001, the company had reported a negative gross margin of 26.5 percent, and in the first quarter of 2001 gross margin stood at 31.5 percent

Deferred revenue at the end of the first quarter of 2002 was $124.5 million, a decrease from $136.6 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2001, and an increase from $93.5 million at the end of the first quarter of 2001. Bookings for the first quarter of 2002 were $26.0 million, an increase of 32.0 percent from $19.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2001, and a decrease of 73.6 percent from $98.5 million in the first quarter of 2001, resulting in a book-to-bill ratio of 0.77 to 1.0. Backlog at the end of the first quarter of 2002 was $48.2 million, a decrease of 19.7 percent from the $60.0 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2001, and a decrease of 43.8 percent from the $85.7 million at the end of the first quarter of 2001.

Operating expenses dropped substantially from the first quarter of 2001 to the first quarter of this year. First quarter 2002 operating expenses of $33.3 million decreased $37.9 million, or 53.2 percent, from $71.3 million in the same period a year ago, in large part as a result of the company's focused restructuring efforts. Last year's first quarter operating expenses included a one-time in-process research and development charge, as a result of the merger, of $10.1 million. In addition, amortization of goodwill and intangibles in last year's first quarter was $10.4 million, but this year, under new accounting rules that eliminate amortization of goodwill (SFAS No. 142), amortization of intangibles was $1.7 million.

The company ended the first quarter of 2002 with cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash and investments of $104.8 million, an increase of $7.6 million from $97.1 million as of December 31, 2001. Working capital decreased to $53.8 million as of March 31, 2002 from $74.0 million as of December 31, 2001.

David Dutton, president and chief executive officer said, "The first quarter included substantial accomplishments that improved our financial strength and operations. As we anticipated, the last quarter of 2001 was our bookings trough, and true to past pattern, our revenue trough lags that date by about another quarter. We are seeing continuous growth in our bookings and believe we are gaining share in a strengthening marketplace. Further, our aggressive actions over the last months to bring our manufacturing capacity into line with projected needs resulted in the sale or sub-lease of four of the five excess properties that we identified after our merger. Those assets will no longer be a drag on our financial performance."

"In addition," Dutton said, "our balance sheet is much stronger. Shortly after the end of the quarter, we concluded a private placement of 7.4 million shares in which we received cash proceeds of $37.5 million, less fees and expenses, and reduced our promissory notes to STEAG Electronic Systems AG by $8.1 million."

Dutton also gave guidance for the company's second quarter performance, saying, "Although we expect our revenues to remain flat to slightly higher than the first quarter level, we believe our bookings performance should increase by 50 to 60 percent."

Attached to this release are condensed consolidated statements of operations and balance sheets.

At 6:00 AM (Pacific Time) today, Tuesday, May 14th, Mattson will hold a conference call to review the following topics: first quarter 2002 financial results, current business conditions, and the near-term business outlook. The conference call will be publicly available via the Internet (www.mattson.com, under "Investor Line"), beginning with a live webcast at 6:00am Pacific Time, May 14, 2002. In addition to the live webcast, replays will be available to the public on the Mattson website for one week following the live broadcast. Users can access the replay one hour after the call.

This press release contains forward looking statements regarding, among other matters, the Company's future prospects and near-term outlook. Forward looking statements address matters that are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that can cause actual results to differ materially. In addition to the general risks associated with the slowdown in the semiconductor industry and development of complex technology, our future results will depend on a variety of factors, including the timing of significant orders, our ability to timely manufacture and deliver ordered products, our ability to bring new systems to market, the timing of new product releases by our competitors, other competitive factors, and risks of integration following the STEAG-CFM acquisitions. Reference is made to the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for further discussion of risks and uncertainties regarding the Company's business. The Company assumes no obligation to update the information in this press release.

About Mattson Technology, Inc.

Mattson Technology, Inc. is a leading supplier of semiconductor wafer processing equipment used in "front-end" fabrication of integrated circuits. The company is a market leader in dry strip and RTP equipment, and its products combine advanced process technology on high-productivity platforms backed by industry-leading support. Since beginning operations in 1989, the company’s core vision has been to help bring technology leadership and productivity gains to semiconductor manufacturers worldwide. Headquartered in Fremont, Calif., the company maintains sales and support centers throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. For more information, please contact Mattson Technology, Inc., 47131 Bayside Parkway, Fremont, Calif. 94538. Telephone: (800) MATTSON/(510) 657-5900. Fax: (510) 492-5911. Internet: www.mattson.com.