DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 02 December 2025 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1-8 and 11-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication 2017/0358478 to Thothadri et al in view of U.S. Patent 10,964,582 to Wang et al.
In regards to claim 1, Thothadri teaches a transfer apparatus (Figure 11A), comprising: a transfer layer (632 & 420 together) formed of a thermally switchable material that undergoes a phase change when heated [0060], a first side of the transfer layer being placed in contact with a chiplet (110) during a transfer operation; a heater coupled to the transfer layer; and an optical energy source (Figure 11B; 532) operable to apply optical energy to the heater to selectively heat a region of the transfer layer that corresponds to a location of the chiplet, the region holding the chiplet when the optical energy is removed during the transfer operation, the region being subsequently heated during the transfer operation to release the chiplet, wherein the transfer layer is reusable for repeated transfer operations.
But Thothadri fails to expressly teach an optical absorber material thermally coupled to the transfer layer, the optical absorber material comprising a pattern. However, Thothadri does recite a heater thermally coupled to the transfer layer. Furthermore, Wang teaches a transfer apparatus to selectively transfer chiplets by heating an adhesive material. Wang further teaches an optical absorber material (308 & 309 together), the optical absorber material thermally coupled to an adhesion element (306) which couples with the chiplets (314). Although Wang teaches the optical absorber material to be coupled to the chiplet/donor substrate, Thothadri teaches the adhesive layer and therefore the optical absorber material also to be alternatively coupled to chiplet/donor substrate or the transfer layer. [0069] Since Thothadri teaches the adhesive layer and therefore also the optical absorber material to be coupled to the transfer layer and Wang teaches an optical absorber material to be thermally coupled to an adhesion layer, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date to a person having ordinary skill in the art for the optical absorber material thermally coupled to the transfer layer, the optical absorber material comprising a pattern.
Furthermore, Thothadri in view of Wang fails to expressly recite the optical absorber material comprises a pattern configured to facilitate detection of one or more alignment fiducials during the transfer operation, the one or more alignment fiducials disposed on one or both of the transfer layer and the chiplet. However, both Thothadri and Wang both teach the proper alignment of components in order to accurately pick up and transfer the desired chiplet. It would have been an obvious matter of common skill and design choice to a person having ordinary skill in the art to have chosen the well-known optical feature of alignment fiducials to aid in the transfer of the chiplet. Further, since Applicant has not disclosed a particular type of alignment fiducial to be necessary and any alignment fiducial known in the art would provide the desired function, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date to a person having ordinary skill in the art to have provided the optical absorber material comprises a pattern configured to facilitate detection of one or more alignment fiducials during the transfer operation, the one or more alignment fiducials disposed on one or both of the transfer layer and the chiplet.
In regards to claim 2, Wang teaches the optical absorber material comprises an optical absorber layer coupled to a second side of the transfer layer opposed to the first side.
In regards to claim 3, Wang teaches the optical absorber layer comprises one of or a combination of metal, carbon, and semiconductor. (Column 5)
In regards to claim 4, although Wang does not expressly teach the metal comprises one of or a combination of Pt, Ni, Ti, Cr, Mo, and Cu, Wang does teach the thermal elements (308) to include thin film resistors, diode structures or high optical energy absorbing efficiency materials. These components commonly include metals, such as Pt, Ni, Ti, Cr, Mo, and Cu or a combination thereof. Therefore, although not expressly stated, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date to a person having ordinary skill in the art for the metal to comprise one of or a combination of Pt, Ni, Ti, Cr, Mo, and Cu.
In regards to claim 5, Wang teaches the semiconductor comprises at least one of silicon, amorphous silicon, polysilicon, and TiN. (Column 5)
In regards to claims 6-8, Wang teaches the optical absorber layer does not provide a contiguous current path between opposing edges of the transfer layer, the transfer apparatus further comprising: an optically transparent conductive layer, wherein the optically transparent conductive layer includes at least one of ITO, ZnO, fluorine doped tin oxide, conductive polymers, carbon nanotubes, or graphene (Column 5), in thermal contact with the transfer layer; and two or more electrodes coupled to pass an electrical current across the optically transparent conductive layer, the electrical current heating the transparent conductive layer to non-selectively perform the subsequent heating of the transfer layer (Column 5 Line 55 – Column 6 Line 40), and two or more electrodes coupled to pass an electrical current across the optical absorber layer, the electrical current heating the absorber to non-selectively perform the subsequent heating of the transfer layer.
In regards to claim 11, although Thothadri in view of Wang does not expressly teach the optical absorber layer comprises constituents of an optically absorbing material mixed in with the thermally switchable material, Applicant teaches in Figure 7 and paragraph [0038] of the Specification that mixing the optically absorbing material with the thermally switchable material is an alternative embodiment. Since these embodiments are obvious variants, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date to a person having ordinary skill in the art to have provided the optical absorber layer comprises constituents of an optically absorbing material mixed in with the thermally switchable material.
In regards to claims 12 and 13, Wang teaches the thermally switchable material comprises a shaped memory polymer, wherein the shaped memory polymer comprises stearyl acrylate. (Column 4 & Column 5)
In regards to claim 14, Thothadri teaches the optical energy source is a scanned laser beam. [0082]
In regards to claim 15, Wang teaches the subsequent heating is performed by optical exposure, laser irradiation, infrared lamp heating, electrical joule heating, inductive heating, RF heating, hot plate heating, conductive heating, convection heating, forced air, or a combination thereof.
In regards to claim 16, both Thothadri and Wang teach the transfer layer contacts a second chiplet that is not proximate the heated regions of the transfer layer, the second chiplet not being held by the transfer layer during the transfer operation.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9 and 10 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The prior art of record fails to disclose or reasonably suggest a pattern that exposes portions of the second side of the transfer layer such that objects can be viewed through the transfer layer during the transfer operation in addition to the accompanying features of the independent claim and any intervening claims.
Claims 17-22 are allowed. The prior art of record fails to disclose or reasonably suggest a method, comprising: causing a transfer layer of a transfer head to contact a chiplet at a first side of the transfer layer; apply optical energy to heat an optical absorber material in or near a region of the transfer layer, the region corresponding to a location of the chiplet, the transfer layer formed of a thermally switchable material that undergoes a phase change when heated resulting in the region conforming to the chiplet, the optical absorber material comprising a pattern configured to facilitate detection of one or more alignment fiducials disposed on one or both of the transfer layer and the chiplet; removing the optical energy to cause the transfer layer to hold the chiplet; moving the transfer head relative to a donor substrate or surface to move the chiplet; and subsequently heating the region of the transfer layer to release the chiplet, wherein the transfer layer is reusable for repeated transfer operations in addition to the accompanying features of the independent claim.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 02 December 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues Thothadri in view of Wang fail to teach the newly amended portion of claim 1. However, the newly amended portion of claim 1 has been addressed in the above rejection. The combination of Thothadri in view of Wang teach an obvious modification as addressed in the above rejection.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TINA M WONG whose telephone number is (571)272-2352. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30-5:30.
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/TINA WONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874