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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I in the reply filed on 5/14/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 7-12 and 20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 5/14/2025.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 2-5 and 13-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Re claim 2, lines 5-6, the phrase “a strained layer removal step of removing a strained layer introduced in the through hole formation step” is unclear and indefinite. And/or it does not positively recite the active processing steps. For example, at least the active step for forming the strained layer is lacking. How is the strained layer introduced in the through hole formation step etc.?
The remaining claims are rejected for depending from the above rejected claim 2.
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(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 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by BRUNO GHYSELEN, WO 2019186266 A2.
Re claim 1, GHYSELEN discloses a method for manufacturing an aluminum nitride substrate, comprising an embrittlement processing step (e.g., fig. 2, through implantation to form an embrittlement zone etc.) of reducing strength of a silicon carbide underlying substrate 20’ (fig. 2); and a crystal growth step of forming an aluminum nitride layer 300’ (e.g., fig. 2) on the silicon carbide underlying substrate, see figs. 1-5 and pages 1-15 for more details.
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.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over BRUN GHYSELEN, WO 2019186266 A2 in view of Schlesser et al., US Pub. No. 2016/0284545 A1.
Re claim 6, GHYSELEN disclosed above, however, GHYSELEN does not explicitly show that the crystal growth step is a step of growing by a physical vapor transport method. Using the physical vapor transport method for forming AlN has been well-known in semiconductor art. For example, Schlesser et al. teach a method for forming a semiconductor device, which comprises forming the AlN by using the PVT method (e.g., claim1, paragraph 3 and/or 8).
Therefore, the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the invention was made to select any suitable processes (e.g., PVT) for forming the AlN in order to provide high crystalline quality, low defect & impurity levels and/or fast growth rates etc.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JACK CHEN whose telephone number is (571)272-1689. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm.
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/JACK S CHEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2893