Hewlett-Packard Buys Stake in Oregon Firm

PALO ALTO — In the latest in a string of deals to acquire new technologies, Hewlett-Packard Co. said it had bought a minority stake in a small Oregon semiconductor measurement company.

Hewlett-Packard invested an undisclosed amount for a minority interest in Cascade Microtech of Beaverton, Ore., the two companies said.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

In return, Hewlett-Packard licensed Cascade’s technology for high-speed measurement of silicon wafers during the design and manufacturing of computer chips.

The company’s most visible acquisition was its $500-million purchase of Apollo Computer Inc. in 1989. HP has also bought stakes in semiconductor maker Actel Corp., computer networking concern 3Com Corp. and telecommunications company Octel Communications Inc.