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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 02/03/2026 has been entered.
Drawings
New corrected drawings in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in this application because FIG. 4 does not show the four, fifth and sixth via IN THE TRENCH. Applicant is advised to employ the services of a competent patent draftsperson outside the Office, as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office no longer prepares new drawings. The corrected drawings are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. The requirement for corrected drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 10-18 and 26-27 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by SHIMOMURA (Pub. No.: US 2022/0302146).
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Re claim 10, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D [as shown above] teaches an apparatus, comprising:
a set of word lines (146/246, ¶ [0205]) extending in a first direction;
a first via [FV] in a trench (265) wherein the first via [FV] extends in a second direction (vertical) different than the first direction (horizontal), and wherein the trench (265) extends through at least a portion of the set of word lines (upper sets of word lines 246);
a second via (86B, note that “Second contact via structures 86B vertically extend through the second-tier retro-stepped dielectric material portion 265 and contact a respective one of the second electrically conductive layers 246”, [0127] and 246 are the word lines, [0205]) in the trench (265), wherein the second via extends in the second direction (vertical) and is coupled with a word line of the set of word lines (146/246); and
a third via (left 76B/[TV]) in the trench (265), wherein the second via [SV] is between the first via [FV] and the third via [TV] along the first direction (horizontal), and wherein the first via ([FV], by dielectric layer 52 of FIG. 11B, [0177]) and the third via ([TV], by dielectric spacer 76A, [0207]) are electrically isolated from the word line of the set of word lines (146/246).
Re claim 11, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 10, further comprising:
a fourth via [FourV], a fifth via [FifthV], and a sixth via [SixV] in the trench, wherein the fourth via, the fifth via, and the sixth via extend in the second direction, wherein the fifth via is between the fourth via and the sixth via along the first direction (vertical), wherein the fifth via is coupled with a second word line (146/[SWL]) of the set of word lines, wherein the fourth via [FourV] and the sixth via [SixV] are electrically isolated from the word line of the set of word lines, and wherein the first via [FV] is aligned with the fourth via [FourV] along a third direction (Z-direction with different depth) different than the first direction and the second direction, the second via [SV] is aligned with the fifth via [FifthV] along the third direction, and the third via [TV] is aligned with the sixth via [SixV] along the third direction.
Re claim 12, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 11, wherein the second via being coupled with the word line [FWL] is based at least in part on a first material (right 86B) surrounding the second via contacting the trench (filled with 265) at a first level of the trench along the second direction and the fifth via [FifthV] being coupled with the second word line is based at least in part on a second material (left 86A) surrounding the fifth via contacting the trench at a second level of the trench (filled with 165) along the second direction different than the first level of the trench.
Re claim 13, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 10, further comprising: a first contact [FC] and a second contact [SC] on the trench, wherein the first contact and the second contact are aligned along the first direction, wherein the first contact contacts the trench at a first level of the trench along the second direction (horizontal) and the second contact contacts [SC] the trench at a second level of the trench along the second direction different than the first level of the trench, and wherein the first contact is coupled with the second via [SV].
Re claim 14, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 13, wherein: the second contact [SC] is coupled with a fourth via [FourV], and the fourth via is aligned with the second via along a third direction (Z-direction) different than the first direction and the second direction.
Re claim 15, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 10, wherein the second via (right 86B) is surrounded by a dielectric material (265, [0252]).
Re claim 16, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 15, wherein: the first via ([FV], by dielectric layer 52 of FIG. 11B, [0177]) and the third via ([TV], by dielectric spacer 76A, [0207]) are surrounded by the dielectric material, and the first via and the third via are electrically isolated from the word line of the set of word lines based at least in part on a thickness of the dielectric material.
Re claim 17, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 15, wherein the dielectric material comprises an oxide material (265, [0252]).
Re claim 18, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 10, wherein the second via comprises titanium, or titanium nitride, or tungsten, or any combination thereof (86B, ¶ [0371]-[0372]).
Re claim 26, SHIMOMURA, FIG. 42D [as shown above] teaches the apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first via [FV] penetrates a first wall of the trench [FWofT], the second via [SV] penetrates a floor of the trench [FofT], and the third via [TV] penetrates a second wall of the trench [SWofT].
Re claim 27, SHIMOMURA, FIGS. 42C-D teaches the apparatus of claim 26, wherein the first wall of the trench [FWofT] and the second wall [SWofT] of the trench are coated in an oxide material (oxide material of 232, [0364), and the floor of the trench (contact 246/146) is not coated in the oxide material.
Claim(s) 10, 15-17 and 26-27 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by SHIN (Pub. No.: US 2022/0406714).
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Re claim 10, SHIMOMURA, FIG. 32 [as shown above] teaches an apparatus, comprising:
a set of word lines ¶ [0065] extending in a first direction;
a first via [FV] in a trench [T] wherein the first via [FV] extends in a second direction (vertical) different than the first direction (horizontal), and wherein the trench [T] extends through at least a portion of the set of word lines ¶ [0065];
a second via [SV] in the trench [T], wherein the second via extends in the second direction (vertical) and is coupled with a word line of the set of word lines; and
a third via [TV] in the trench (265), wherein the second via [SV] is between the first via [FV] and the third via [TV] along the first direction (horizontal), and wherein the first via [FV] and the third via [TV] are electrically isolated (by dielectric layer 202c, [0035]) from the word line of the set of word lines.
Re claim 15, SHIN, FIG. 4 teaches the apparatus of claim 10, wherein the second via [SV] is surrounded by a dielectric material (150, [0068]).
Re claim 16, SHIN, FIG. 4 teaches the apparatus of claim 15, wherein: the first via [FV] and the third via [TV] are surrounded by the dielectric material, and the first via and the third via are electrically isolated (by dielectric material of 202c) from the word line of the set of word lines based at least in part on a thickness of the dielectric material.
Re claim 17, SHIN, FIG. 4 teaches the apparatus of claim 15, wherein the dielectric material comprises an oxide material (150, [0068]).
Re claim 26, SHIN, FIG. 32 [as shown above] teaches the apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first via [FV] penetrates a first wall of the trench (right side wall of [T]), the second via [SV] penetrates a floor of the trench (bottom of [T]), and the third via [TV] penetrates a second wall of the trench (left side wall of [T]).
Re claim 27, SHIN, FIG. 4 teaches the apparatus of claim 26, wherein the first wall of the trench and the second wall of the trench are coated in an oxide material (oxide material of 110, [0090]), and the floor of the trench (contact 240 of metal material) is not coated in the oxide material.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 01/20/2026 have been fully considered but they are moot due to a new ground of rejection.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TONY TRAN whose telephone number is (571)270-1749. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8AM-5PM, EST.
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/TONY TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2893