DETAILED ACTION
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 with traverse of Group I, claims 1-9, 14-20, in the reply filed on February 20, 2026, is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the apparatus recited in claim 1 requires the same specific characteristics as those of the apparatus recited in claim 10. This is not found persuasive because the elected claims 1-9, and 14-20, are directed towards the treatment of a substrate, and the non-elected claims are directed to an apparatus that has multiple fluid tanks and the making of supercritical fluids. Claims 10-13, are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a non-elected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3-9, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U. S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0366348 (hereinafter referred to as Cho).
Cho, in the abstract, in paragraph nos. [0009], [0010], and [0025]-[0026], [0030], [0032], and in figure 1, and 3, discloses a manufacturing unit (manufacturing a semiconductor device) that includes a substrate drying apparatus, that includes a chamber (dry chamber) that includes space and a substrate holder to position the substrate in the drying chamber, a supercritical drying apparatus (reference 1), that supplies supercritical fluid to the substrate drying apparatus (dry chamber), wherein the supercritical drying apparatus includes a source fluid supply unit (claimed fluid supply tank), super critical fluid supply unit (210) that includes a first supercritical fluid reservoir (reference 215, claimed high-temperature fluid tank) that stores supercritical fluid at a fourth temperature (claimed first temperature), a second supercritical fluid reservoir (reference 211, claimed low-temperature fluid tank) that stores supercritical fluid at a second temperature that is different from the fourth temperature (temperature of supercritical fluid in reservoir 215), wherein, as illustrated in figure 1, the two supercritical fluid reservoirs are connected parallel between the source fluid supply unit (300) and the dry chamber (100) (claim 1). Cho, in [0065]-[0067], [0069], and in figures 1, and 5, discloses that supercritical reservoirs (part of 210) that includes the claimed high temperature fluid tank (reference 210_3 or reference 215 of figure 1) includes a housing with reservoir space (inner space in the storage tank), and a heater (214a, of figure 5, claimed heating device), wherein the heater includes a heat transfer plate (heater plate 214b) that is positioned inside the tank storage space (tank housing) and is connected to the heater (214a) (claims 3-4). Cho, in [0041], and in figure 1, figure 6, and figure 7, discloses that a controller controls the flow of the super critical fluid from the supercritical fluid supply unit (200), that comprises both the supercritical reservoirs 215 and 211 (high temperature and low temperature fluid tanks), to the dry chamber by controlling the fluid flow controllers 232c and 236b (for the reservoir 215, high temperature fluid tank) and the controllers 232a and 236a (for the reservoir 211, low temperature fluid tank) (claim 5). Cho, in [0034], [0036], [0037], and [0041], and in figures 1, 6, and 7, discloses that the fluid flow controller (high temperature fluid flow controller) includes plurality of supply lines and plurality of flow control valves on the supply lines, as illustrated in figures 6-7, wherein the plurality of supply lines (references 222_3 , and 226_1, 226_3, and 226_2) are connected in parallel between the supercritical fluid reservoir (215, 210_3, claimed high temperature fluid tank) and the dry chamber (process chamber 100) (claim 6). Cho, in [0051]-[0054], discloses that the supercritical fluid supply apparatus includes the source fluid reservoir (fluid supply tank) that is connected to a condenser and a pump, wherein the condenser is connected to each of the source lines (324_3 for the high temperature fluid tank 210_3, and 324_1 for the low temperature fluid tank 210_1) and pump in series with each other (as illustrated in figure 1) such that the supercritical fluid reservoirs 210_3, and 210_1 are positioned between the pump (P) and the process chamber (dry chamber, 100) (claim 7). Cho, in [0057], and lines 1-2 of [0059], discloses that the substrate is provided in the process chamber (dry chamber) wherein the substrate is supported by the support member (chuck) that is installed on the bottom of the housing such that the substrate is held by the support member in the dry space within the process chamber as illustrated in figure 3 (claim 8). Cho, in [0010], discloses that the manufacturing unit includes a substrate cleaning apparatus, and Cho, in [0099], and in figure 15, discloses that the substrate cleaning apparatus (includes a chamber, see 5400) uses a clean solution to clean the substrate (wet process) via a fluid supply member (5420) that supplies fluids such as rinsing agent, cleaning agent, organic solvent etc. (wetting solution) on the substrate ([0111]-[0112]) , and Cho, in [0100], discloses that the substrate that has been processed in the substrate cleaning apparatus is subsequently processed in the substrate drying apparatus to dry the cleaning solution on the substrate (claim 9).
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) 2, and 14-20, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U. S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0366348 (hereinafter referred to as Cho) in view of U. S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0280027 (hereinafter referred to as Fulton).
Cho, in [0100], discloses that the substrate that has been processed in the substrate cleaning apparatus to clean (wet process) is subsequently processed in the substrate drying apparatus to dry the cleaning solution on the substrate. Cho, in the abstract, in paragraph nos. [0009], [0010], and [0025]-[0026], [0027], [0030], [0032], and in figure 1, and 3, discloses a using a process chamber (dry chamber) that includes inner space and a substrate holder to position the substrate in the process chamber to dry the substrate using supercritical fluid supplied by the supercritical fluid supply unit (200), wherein the supercritical fluid supply unit includes a first supercritical fluid reservoir (reference 215, claimed high-temperature fluid tank) that stores supercritical fluid at a temperature of about 80°C (claimed first temperature), supplied from the source fluid supply unit (300, claimed fluid supply tank), at a fourth temperature (claimed first temperature, heated fluid) and supplies high temperature supercritical fluid to the process chamber, a second supercritical fluid reservoir (reference 211, claimed low-temperature fluid tank) that stores supercritical fluid at a temperature of about 30°C (claimed second temperature), supplied from the source fluid supply unit (300, claimed fluid supply tank), at a second temperature that is different from the fourth temperature (temperature of supercritical fluid in reservoir 215) and supplies super critical fluid at the fourth temperature (claimed second temperature) to the process chamber (claims 14, and 19-20). Cho, in [0030], [0032]-[0037], discloses that the flow control valves for each of the supply lines (supply lines for the supercritical fluids) from 210_3 and 210_1 (high temperature fluid and low temperature fluid) are individually controlled by the corresponding valves (232c and 232a) i.e., the super critical fluid from each reservoir can have its own flow rate (claimed first and second flow rate) and as disclosed by Cho, in [0044], the flow rate of the one of the supercritical fluids supplied by one of the reservoirs are different than the other. Cho discloses that the supercritical fluid from one of supercritical fluid reservoirs is for dissolving the cleaning solution and Cho, in [0032], and [0049], discloses that the drying process that uses the different supercritical fluids from the different supercritical fluid reservoirs is changed based on the semiconductor process being conducted (based on the type of the substrate disposed in the chamber), and that based on the semiconductor manufacturing process to be performed on the substrate, the supercritical fluids may be changed (i.e., supercritical fluid from either high temperature or low temperature reservoir) and the corresponding flow rate (claims 16-18).
The difference between the claims and Cho is that Cho does not disclose the mixer recited in claim 2, to mix the super critical fluids from the different supercritical fluid reservoirs at different temperatures to form the dry fluid and supplying the dry fluid to the process chamber (claim 15).
Fulton in the abstract, and in [0001], and [0011] discloses the mixing of different supercritical fluids to form a homogenous mixed fluid and supplying the fluid for the processes on the semiconductor wafer. Fulton, in [0011]-[0016], discloses that the mixing apparatus (mixer) includes a mixing section (mixer housing with space) with vertically disposed mixing segments (blades).
Therefore, it would be obvious to a skilled artisan to modify Cho by providing a mixer and mixing the different supercritical fluids to dispense the combined fluid mixture as taught by Fulton because Cho, in [0039], and [0044], discloses that the substrate in the process chamber is provided with the different supercritical fluids on its surface i.e., the different supercritical fluids are mixed while performing the drying process on the substrate, and Fulton, in [0016], and [0036], discloses that using a mixer with mixing segments enables the producing of a mixed fluid that has a density gradient, and that using mixing segments with coils in the mixing apparatus enables the manipulating of the flow of the fluid mixture in a desired direction while yielding a homogenous mixed fluid and achieving rapid mixing and Fulton, in [0044], discloses that using a mixer produces various mixed fluids that can be applied for various fabrication applications such as cleaning and rinsing.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Daborah Chacko-Davis whose telephone number is (571) 272-1380. The examiner can normally be reached on 9:30AM-6:00PM EST Mon-Fri. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Mark F. Huff can be reached on (571) 272-1385. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-272-8300. 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.
/DABORAH CHACKO-DAVIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737 April 16, 2026.
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