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, species b, claims 1 and 4-12 in the reply filed on 4 February 2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 2, 3, and 13-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected method and species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 4 February 2026.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because FIG. 4O incorrectly identifies the gate terminal with reference numeral 235 corresponding to a gate insulator rather than with the correct reference number 245. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
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 10-12 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.
Claim 10 recites the limitation, “the each of the channel regions.” There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 11 and 12 are rejected for merely containing the flaws of the parent claim.
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.
Claims 1, 4, 6, 7, and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kim et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2024/0021676, hereinafter Kim ‘676).
With respect to claim 1, Kim ‘676 teaches (FIG. 8) a transistor structure as claimed, comprising:
a first terminal (384) and a second terminal (394) ([0100]);
a stack of nanoribbons (320, 381, and 391) spanning a distance between the first (384) and second (394) terminals, wherein at least one nanoribbon of the stack has ends (381 and 391) comprising silicon and a channel region (320) between the ends, the channel region comprising a transition metal and a chalcogen ([0067, 0099, 0101-0103]);
a gate electrode material (360) between the nanoribbon (320, 381, and 391) and an adjacent nanoribbon of the stack, the gate electrode material spanning at least a portion of the distance between the first (384) and second (394) terminals ([0099]); and
a gate insulator (340) between the channel region (320) of each of the nanoribbons (320, 381, and 391) and the gate electrode material (360) ([0099]).
With respect to claim 4, Kim ‘676 teaches wherein first and second contact regions (portions of channel region 320 contacting ends 381 and 391) of the at least one nanoribbon (320, 381, and 391) are between the ends (381 and 391), the channel region (320) is between the first and second contact regions, and the first and second contact regions comprise the transition metal and the chalcogen, and further comprise a dopant ([0069]).
With respect to claim 6, Kim ‘676 teaches wherein the ends (381 and 391) comprising silicon have a thickness greater than a thickness of the channel region (320) ([0099, 0101-0102]).
With respect to claim 7, Kim ‘676 teaches wherein the transition metal is tungsten or molybdenum ([0067]).
With respect to claim 9, Kim ‘676 teaches (FIG. 8) an integrated circuit (IC) device as claimed, comprising:
an IC die (300) comprising a substrate (SU) and a transistor over the substrate ([0099]), the transistor comprising:
a first terminal (384) and a second terminal (394) ([0100]);
a stack of nanoribbons (320, 381, and 391) spanning a distance between the first (384) and second (394) terminals, wherein ends (381 and 391) of the each of the nanoribbons comprise silicon and wherein a channel region (320) of each of the nanoribbons between the ends comprises a transition metal and a chalcogen ([0067, 0099, 0101-0103]);
a gate electrode (360) material between adjacent ones of the nanoribbons (320, 381, and 391) and spanning a portion of the distance between the first (384) and second (394) terminals ([0099]); and
a gate insulator (340) between the channel region (320) of each of the nanoribbons (320, 381, and 391) and the gate electrode material (360) ([0099]).
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 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim ‘676 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Yamazaki (US Patent Application Publication 2011/0133179, hereinafter Yamazaki ‘179).
With respect to claim 8, Kim ‘676 teaches the device as described in claim 1 above with the exception of the additional limitation wherein the first or second terminal comprises tungsten and oxygen.
However, Yamazaki ‘179 teaches tungsten oxide as a preferred material for source (108a) and drain (108b) electrodes ([0069]). Further, the selection of a known material based on its suitability for its intended use supports a prima facie obviousness determination. Sinclair & Carroll Co. v. Interchemical Corp., 325 U.S. 327, 65 USPQ 297 (1945) and In re Leshin, 277 F.2d 197, 125 USPQ 416 (CCPA 1960). See MPEP 2144.07.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have formed the first or second terminal of Kim ‘676 comprising tungsten and oxygen as taught by Yamazaki ‘179 as preferred materials for source and drain electrodes and as a matter of selecting a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use.
Claims 10 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim ‘676 as applied to claim 9 above, and further in view of Gardner et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2023/0114024, hereinafter Gardner ‘024).
With respect to claim 10, Kim ‘676 teaches the device as described in claim 9 above with the exception of the additional limitation wherein the each of the channel regions comprises the transition metal and the chalcogen in a crystalline phase.
However, Gardner ‘024 teaches (FIG. 1) 2D channel materials (110) comprising a transition metal and a chalcogen in a crystalline phase to improve electrical characteristics ([0030]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have formed each of the channel regions of Kim ‘676 comprising the transition metal and the chalcogen in a crystalline phase as taught by Gardner ‘024 to improve electrical characteristics.
With respect to claim 11, Kim ‘676 teaches wherein the transition metal is tungsten or molybdenum ([0067]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 5 is 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.
Claim 12 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art of record fails to teach the transistor structure of claim 5 and the IC device of claim 12 in the combination of limitations as claimed, noting particularly the limitations, “the first and second contact regions comprise the transition metal and the chalcogen in a second crystalline phase different from the first crystalline phase,” and, “the contact regions of the nanoribbons comprise the transition metal and the chalcogen in a second crystalline phase different than the first crystalline phase,” respectively.
Kim ‘676 represents the closest prior art of record. See the 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) rejection of claims 1 and 9 above. However Kim ‘676 is silent to the contact regions (portions of channel region 320 contacting ends 381 and 391) having a second crystalline phase different from a first crystalline phase of the channel region (320). None of the other prior art references made of record cure this deficiency.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Basker et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2019/0341467); Lee et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2020/0357931); Maxey et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2021/0391478); Dorow (US Patent Application Publication 2021/0408375); and Gardner et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2023/0108707) teach stacked nanoribbon transistors.
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/C.M.R./Examiner, Art Unit 2893
/YARA B GREEN/Supervisor Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2893