OPAL
The Measure of Excellence

                        FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Company Contacts:
Henry Schwarzbaum        Helene Kamm              Lillian Armstrong
CFO, Opal, Inc.          Controller, Opal, Inc.   VP, Lippert/Heilshorn & Assoc.
Tel. 011-972-8-938-3524  Tel. 408-727-6060        Tel. 415-433-3777

OPAL, INC. ANNOUNCES ACQUISITION BY APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.

SANTA CLARA, CA -- November 24, 1996 -- Opal, Inc. (NASDAQ/NM Symbol: OPAL)
announced today that it has entered into a merger agreement with Applied
Materials, Inc. providing for the acquisition of Opal by Applied Materials for
$18.50 per share in cash. Pursuant to the merger agreement, Applied Materials is
expected to commence a cash tender offer for any and all outstanding shares of
Opal stock at $18.50 per share net to the seller in cash on or before Wednesday,
November 27. Any Opal shares not purchased in the offer will be acquired for the
same price in cash in a second-step merger.

Applied Materials' acquisition of Opal has been approved by the boards of
directors of both companies. Applied Materials also entered into an agreement
with certain shareholders of Opal, Clal Electronics Industries Ltd. and Orbotech
Ltd., and two officers of Opal, representing 49 percent of Opal's shares
outstanding, whereby they have agreed to tender shares into Applied Materials'
offer and have granted Applied Materials an option to purchase their shares. The
offer and merger are subject to the purchase of a majority of the outstanding
shares of Opal's common stock, as well as other customary conditions.

Robertson, Stephens & Company is acting as financial advisor to Opal in
connection with the transaction.

"Together with the Opal Board of Directors, I believe that this merger
represents a strategic opportunity with significant benefits to our customers,
our shareholders and our employees," said Mendy Erad, chairman of Opal.
"Leveraging Israel's strong technology talent, our world-class technology
together with Applied Materials' global infrastructure will allow us to provide
advanced metrology systems and services to meet our customers' emerging
requirements. The joint strengths of Applied Materials and Opal will enhance our
commitment to our customers and enable us to supply them with faster and better
solutions, accompanied by first-class support."

Opal develops, manufactures, sells and services high-speed automatic wafer
metrology systems used by semiconductor makers to verify critical dimensions
during the production of integrated circuits (ICs). These measurements help
manufacturers maximize and sustain the yields of ICs at the highest performance
levels attainable by a production line.

Applied Materials is a Fortune 500 global growth company and the world's largest
supplier of wafer fabrication systems and services to the global semiconductor
industry. Applied Materials is traded on the NASDAQ National Market under the
symbol "AMAT."

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