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 .
Status of the Claims
Group I, Species 1, as shown in FIG. 7, is elected.
Amendment filed June 28, 2026 is acknowledged. Claims 1-2 and 14 have been amended. Non-Elected Invention and Species, claims 8-13 have been withdrawn from consideration. Claims 1-5, 7-14 are pending.
Action on merits of claims 1-5, 7 and 14 follows.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 1, 3-5 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LI et al. (US. Patent No. 8,866,242) of record, in view of KAO et al. (US. Pub. No. 2009/0085132).
With respect to claim 1, LI teaches a magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM) structure substantially as claimed, including:
a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) (501-503), a first spin orbit torque (SOT) element (504), a conductive layer (505) and a second SOT element (510) disposed from bottom to top;
two spacers (508) respectively contacting two sidewalls (left, right) of the MTJ, two sidewalls (left, right) of the first SOT element (504), and two sidewall (left, right) of the conductive layer (505), and wherein the spacers (508) are dielectric, the second SOT element (510) covers the two spacers (508), the two sidewalls of the first SOT element (504), and the two sidewalls of the conductive layer (505);
a dielectric layer (IMD) disposed on the two spacers (508) and surrounding the MTJ, the first SOT element, the conductive layer, and the second SOT element, and wherein the dielectric layer (IMD) is silicon oxide;
a protective layer (IMD) disposed on the second SOT element (510), wherein the protective layer (IMD) covers and contacts a top surface of the second SOT element (510), and the protective layer (IMD) is an insulator; and
a first conductive via (513-514) penetrating the protective layer (IMD) and contacting the second SOT element (510). (See FIG. 5H).
Thus, LI is shown to teach all the features of the claim with the exception of explicitly disclosing the dielectric spacers being silicon nitride.
However, KAO teaches two spacers (318) respectively contacting two sidewalls (left, right) of MTJ (312), and two sidewalls (left, right) of conductive layer (313), and wherein the spacers (318) are silicon nitride. (See FIG. (14).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention was made to form the dielectric spacers of LI utilizing silicon nitride as taught by KAO for the same intended purpose of isolating and protecting the sidewalls of the MTJ.
With respect to claim 2, in view of KAO, an end of the protective layer (324), an end of second SOT element (322), and an end of one of the two spacers (318) are aligned with each other.
With respect to claim 3, the MRAM structure of LI or KAO, further comprises a second conductive via (BE or 310) disposed below the MTJ and contacting the MTJ.
With respect to claim 4, a width of the second SOT element (510 or 322) of LI or KAO is greater than a width of the conductive layer (505).
With respect to claim 5, the dielectric layer (IMD or 328) of LI or KAO surrounds the protective layer and the second SOT element (510).
**With respect to claim 7, In view of LIN, the protective layer (72) comprises a nitrogen-containing material.
With respect to claim 14, in view of KAO, each of two spacers (318) comprises a vertical portion extending along one of the two sidewalls of the MTJ, one of the two sidewalls of the first SOT element and one of the two sidewalls of the conductive layer, and a curved portion extending laterally outward from a bottom of the vertical portion.
Claims 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LI ‘242 and KAO ‘881 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of MAO et al. (US. Patent No. 8,138,562) of record.
LI and KAO teaches the MRAM structure as described in claim 1 above including:
a protective layer (IMD or 324) disposed on the second SOT element (510 or 322), wherein the protective layer covers and contacts a top surface of the second SOT element, and the protective layer is an insulator.
Thus, LI and KAO are shown to teach all the features of the claim with the exception of explicitly disclosing the protective layer comprises a nitrogen-containing material.
However, MAO teaches a MRAM structure including:
a protective layer (27) disposed on the second SOT element (26a), wherein the protective layer (27) covers and contacts a top surface of the second SOT element (26a), and the protective layer is an insulator, wherein the protective layer (27) comprises a nitrogen-containing material. (See FIG. 13).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention was made to form the protective layer of LI, in view of KAO, utilizing the nitrogen-containing material as taught by MAO for the same intended purpose of defining the second SOT.
Thus, LI and LIN is shown to teach all the features of the claim with the exception of explicitly disclosing an end of the protective layer, an end of the second SOT element, and an end of one of the two spacers (508) are aligned with each other.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to amended and new claims have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/ANH D MAI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2893
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