Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/094,112

NANOWIRE LED, DISPLAY MODULE INCLUDING THE NANOWIRE LED, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE DISPLAY MODULE

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Jan 06, 2023
Priority
Jul 07, 2020 — RE 10-2020-0083658 +3 more
Examiner
SMITH, BRADLEY
Art Unit
2817
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
OA Round
3 (Non-Final)
80%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
77%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 80% — above average
80%
Career Allowance Rate
720 granted / 901 resolved
+11.9% vs TC avg
Minimal -3% lift
Without
With
+-2.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 5m
Avg Prosecution
32 currently pending
Career history
927
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.6%
-37.4% vs TC avg
§103
43.7%
+3.7% vs TC avg
§102
22.6%
-17.4% vs TC avg
§112
24.6%
-15.4% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 901 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 . Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 3-6, 8 and 10 have been considered but are moot because the rejection below addresses the claim amendments. 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(s) 1, and 5-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Munchi et al. (US 2022/0262978) in view of Kamiguchi et al. (US Patent 6,043,515) and Bongchu et al. (KR20190075869A). Regarding claim 1, Munchi et al. disclose n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer having a pillar shape (the “n” in the n-i-p) [0263](fig. 1); an active layer (intrinsic active layer, the “i” in the n-i-p)[0263](fig 1) provided on a first side an uppermost surface and a side surface of the n- type GaN-based semiconductor layer; a p-type GaN-based semiconductor layer(the “p” in the n-i-p) [0263](fig. 1, radial n-i-p structure) provided on the active layer. Munchi et al. fails to disclose a magnetic layer provided on a second side a lowermost surface of the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer Regarding claim 1, Kamiguchi et al. disclose a magnetic layer (ferromagnetic) (308) provided on a second side a lowermost surface of the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer (fig. 11) [col. 9 lines 20-30]. (The examiner notes the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer would have a top portion and a bottom portion.) The combination of Munchi and Kamiguchi et al. would disclose wherein the magnetic layer comprises:at least one first thin film layer comprising an n-GaN-based semiconductor (Kamiguchi et al., bottom portion of the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer (fig. 11) [col. 9 lines 20-30]) ; and at least one second thin film layer comprising a material having a magnetic property (Kamiguchi et al. Ni and Fe materials for the ferromagnetic layer (308) [col. 9 lines 34-35]), and wherein the at least one first thin film layer and the at least one second thin film layer are alternatingly stacked. The prior art included each element claimed, although not necessarily in a single prior art reference, with the only difference between the claimed invention and the prior art being the lack of actual combination of the elements in a single prior art reference. One of ordinary skill in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods (forming a magnetic layer on the lowermost side of the n-GaN layer), and that in combination, each element merely performs the same function as it does separately. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable (the magnetic layer on the LED layer assemble the LED on a substrate under a magnetic field [Bongchu et al. 0180] ). Regarding claims 5-6, Kamiguchi et al. disclose one second thin film material comprises Ni and Fe materials for the ferromagnetic layer (308) [col. 9 lines 34-35]. Claim(s) 3-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Munchi et al. (US 2022/0262978) in view of Kamiguchi et al. (US Patent 6,043,515) and Bongchu et al. (KR20190075869A)as applied to claim 1 above in view of Hashimoto et al. (US 2020/0303026). Munchi et al. Kamiguchi et al. and Bongchu et al. disclose the invention supra. Kamiguchi et al. and Munchi et al. fail to disclose one second thin film material comprises diamagnetic material and the diamagnetic material comprises germanium. Hashimoto et al. disclose magnetic layer comprises a germanium [0016]. The combination of references would teach at least one second The prior art included each element claimed, although not necessarily in a single prior art reference, with the only difference between the claimed invention and the prior art being the lack of actual combination of the elements in a single prior art reference. One of ordinary skill in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods (using germanium in a magnetic layer), and that in combination, each element merely performs the same function as it does separately. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable (the layer comprising germanium would form layer having high uniaxial anisotropy [Hashimoto 0016]). Claim(s) 8 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bongchu et al. (KR20190075869A) in view of Kamiguchi et al. (US Patent 6,043,515) and Munchi et al. (US 2022/0262978). Regarding claim 8, Bongchu et al. disclose a thin film transistor (TFT) substrate (1010) [0023, 0141, 0197] (fig 15) comprising a plurality of anode electrodes ( marked up fig 15 below) and a plurality of cathode electrodes ( marked up fig 15 below) provided on a first surface of the TFT substrate; and a plurality of nanowire light emitting diodes (LEDs) ([0196] discloses that the partition wall (1040) is 500nm or less and [0194] notes that the partition wall is twice the height of LED vertical length “y”. Therefore, “y” would be 250nm or less which would make the LED a nanowire) comprising first end parts respectively connected to each anode electrode and second end parts respectively connected to each cathode electrode, wherein each of the plurality of nanowire LEDs has a magnetic property (layer 1240, [0179]) and polarity (upper portion of 1230 doped semiconductor [0018] same as described in applicant’s specification [0050]). Bongchu et al. fails to disclose LEDs comprises:an n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer having a pillar shape;an active layer provided on an uppermost surface and a side surface of the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer; a p-type GaN-based semiconductor layer provided on the active layer. Munchi et al. disclose n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer having a pillar shape (the “n” in the n-i-p) [0263](fig. 1); an active layer (intrinsic active layer, the “i” in the n-i-p)[0263](fig 1) provided on a first side an uppermost surface and a side surface of the n- type GaN-based semiconductor layer; a p-type GaN-based semiconductor layer(the “p” in the n-i-p) [0263](fig. 1, radial n-i-p structure) provided on the active layer. The prior art included each element claimed, although not necessarily in a single prior art reference, with the only difference between the claimed invention and the prior art being the lack of actual combination of the elements in a single prior art reference. One of ordinary skill in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods (forming a radial n-i-p structure), and that in combination, each element merely performs the same function as it does separately. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable (the structure would form an LED). Kamiguchi et al. disclose a magnetic layer (ferromagnetic) (308) provided on a second side a lowermost surface of the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer (fig. 11) [col. 9 lines 20-30]. (The examiner notes the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer would have a top portion and a bottom portion.) The combination of Bongchu et al Munchi et al. and Kamiguchi et al. would form the nanowire LED. The combination of Bongchu et al., Munchi and Kamiguchi et al. would disclose wherein the magnetic layer comprises:at least one first thin film layer comprising an n-GaN-based semiconductor (Kamiguchi et al., bottom portion of the n-type GaN-based semiconductor layer (fig. 11) [col. 9 lines 20-30]) ; and at least one second thin film layer comprising a diamagnetic material or a material having amagnetic property (Kamiguchi et al.), and wherein the at least one first thin film layer and the at least one second thin film layer are alternatingly stacked. The prior art included each element claimed, although not necessarily in a single prior art reference, with the only difference between the claimed invention and the prior art being the lack of actual combination of the elements in a single prior art reference. One of ordinary skill in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods (forming a magnetic layer on the lowermost side of the n-GaN layer), and that in combination, each element merely performs the same function as it does separately. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable (the magnetic layer on the LED layer assemble the LED on a substrate under a magnetic field [Bongchu et al. 0180] ). Regarding claim 10, Bongchu et al. disclose the plurality of nanowire LEDs are provided to the TFT substrate (1010) [0023, 0141, 0197] in a form of a unit pixel comprising red, green, and blue sub- pixels, and wherein the unit pixel [0077] comprises a unit substrate on which the red, green, and blue sub- pixels are provided [0077, 0170]. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRADLEY K SMITH whose telephone number is (571)272-1884. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 10am-6pm. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Marlon Fletcher can be reached at 571-272-2063. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /BRADLEY SMITH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2817
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Prosecution Timeline

Show 4 earlier events
Mar 10, 2026
Examiner Interview Summary
Mar 10, 2026
Applicant Interview (Telephonic)
Mar 31, 2026
Response Filed
May 28, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §103
Jul 27, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Aug 27, 2026
Request for Continued Examination
Aug 31, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Sep 22, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
80%
Grant Probability
77%
With Interview (-2.9%)
2y 5m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 901 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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