Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/206,187

PROCESS OF FORMING SILICON-CONTAINING FILM AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING INTEGRATED CIRCUIT DEVICE USING THE SAME

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jun 06, 2023
Priority
Jun 17, 2022 — RE 10-2022-0074338
Examiner
QIAO, HUIHONG
Art Unit
1763
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
71%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2m
Est. Remaining
94%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 71% — above average
71%
Career Allowance Rate
82 granted / 116 resolved
+5.7% vs TC avg
Strong +23% interview lift
Without
With
+23.2%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 2m
Avg Prosecution
31 currently pending
Career history
156
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
81.2%
+41.2% vs TC avg
§102
6.8%
-33.2% vs TC avg
§112
0.3%
-39.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 116 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . This communication is responsive to the claim set and Response to Restriction filed 02/11/2026. Claims 1-13 and 21 are currently pending. Claims 4-13 are withdrawn due to the Restriction Requirements. The elected claims 1-3 and 21 are rejected for the reasons set forth below. In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. Election/Restrictions Applicant's election with traverse of Group I, Claims 1-3 and 21 in the reply filed on 02/11/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that group II and group III are overlapping one another and there would be no undue burden for the Examiner. This is not found persuasive because Groups I-III are classified in different classes/subclasses, and would require different text search. 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. (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 1-3 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a) (1) as being anticipated by Ling et al. (CN102336847 A). Regarding Claims 1-2 and 21, Ling teaches a compound having the general formula (I ): PNG media_image1.png 97 243 media_image1.png Greyscale , wherein m=1 and R1, R2 and R3 each independently C1 to C20 alkyl (claim 1). Ling further teaches the particular examples of the compounds include morpholinyl trimethoxysilane and morpholinyl triethoxysilane (claim 5 and Example 5). Morpholinyl trimethoxysilane of Example 5 has the structure of: PNG media_image2.png 109 162 media_image2.png Greyscale , which is the instant claimed Compound (3) of Claim 21. Regarding Claim 3, the examiner interprets the phrase “for depositing a silicon-containing film” as reciting the purpose or intended use of the claimed composition. If the body of a claim fully and intrinsically sets forth all of the limitations of the claimed composition, and the preamble merely states, for example, the purpose or intended use of the composition, rather than any distinct definition of any of the claimed composition’s limitations, then the preamble is not considered a limitation and is of no significance to claim construction. (MPEP 2111.02(II). In this case, Ling teaches a composition comprising the claimed compounds (claim 3). Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HUIHONG QIAO whose telephone number is (571)272-8315. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM - 5PM. 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, Joseph Del Sole can be reached at 571-272-1130. 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. /HUIHONG QIAO/ Examiner, Art Unit 1763 /JOSEPH S DEL SOLE/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1763
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Prosecution Timeline

Jun 06, 2023
Application Filed
Apr 28, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

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Patent 12595406
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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
71%
Grant Probability
94%
With Interview (+23.2%)
3y 2m (~2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 116 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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