DETAILED ACTION
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Cross-Reference to Related Applications
2. This application is a 371 of PCT/CN2022/128946 11/01/2022.
Preliminary amendment
3. Preliminary amendment filed on 10/03/2023 has been acknowledged and considered.
In the Preliminary amendment, the applicants have been amended the abstract, the specification, claims 11-12, 15-16 and added new claims 19-20 and remained claims 1-10, 13-14 and 17-18.
Claims 1-20 are currently pending in the application.
Oath/Declaration
4. The oath/declaration filed on 10/03/2023 is acceptable.
Priority
5. Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
Information Disclosure Statement
6. The office acknowledges receipt of the following items from the applicant:
Information Disclosure Statement (IDS) filed on 10/03/2023.
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.
7. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
In claim 1, step of the limitation of “under the condition that the insulator is the piezoelectric, applying a stress to the piezoelectric, and adjusting a magnitude of the stress, or an included angle between a direction of the stress with the boundary between the metal and the insulator to regulate the thermal boundary conductance between the metal and the insulator” is similar to a portion of the above step of the limitation, that is “under the condition that the insulator is the ferroelectric, applying an external electric field or a stress to the ferroelectric, and adjusting a magnitude of the external electric field or the stress, or an included angle between a direction of the external electric field or the stress with the boundary between the metal and the insulator to regulate the thermal boundary conductance between the metal and the insulator”. Therefore, the limitation of “under the condition that the insulator is the piezoelectric, applying a stress to the piezoelectric, and adjusting a magnitude of the stress, or an included angle between a direction of the stress with the boundary between the metal and the insulator to regulate the thermal boundary conductance between the metal and the insulator” is redundant and should be deleted. Correction is required.
Claims 2-20 are directly or indirectly depend on the independent claim 1, then, they are also being rejected.
Allowable Subject Matter
8. The following is a statement of reason for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claims 1-20 would be allowed.
Claims 1-20 are considered allowable since the prior art of record and the considered pertinent to the applicant’s disclosure does not teach or suggest the claimed invention of a method for regulating a thermal boundary conductance between a metal and an insulator, comprising under the condition that the insulator is the ferroelectric, applying an external electric field or a stress to the ferroelectric, and adjusting a magnitude of the external electric field or the stress, or an included angle between a direction of the external electric field or the stress with the boundary between the metal and the insulator to regulate the thermal boundary conductance between the metal and the insulator; and under the condition that the insulator is the pyroelectric, adjusting a temperature of the pyroelectric to regulate the thermal boundary conductance between the metal and the insulator, as cited in the independent claim 1.
Claims 2-20 are directly or indirectly depend on the independent claim 1, then, they are also being allowed.
Note: Claims 1-20 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112 set forth in this Office action.
Cited Prior Arts
9. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
CHUN S (KR-102054673-B1) discloses a method for regulating a thermal boundary conductance between a metal (102) and an insulator (101), comprising: arranging the metal (102) on a surface of the insulator (101), a contact surface between the metal (102) and the insulator (101) being a boundary between the metal (102) and the insulator (101) (Fig. 2 and English Text).
CHANG S (KR-20190084656-A) discloses a method for regulating a thermal boundary conductance between a metal (210) and an insulator (220), comprising: arranging the metal (210) on a surface of the insulator (220), a contact surface between the metal (210) and the insulator (220) being a boundary between the metal (210) and the insulator (220) (Fig. 6 and English Text).
KIM J (KR-20200122284-A) discloses a method for regulating a thermal boundary conductance between a metal (240) and an insulator (230), comprising: arranging the metal (240) on a surface of the insulator (230), a contact surface between the metal (240) and the insulator (230) being a boundary between the metal (240) and the insulator (230) (Fig. 4 and English Text).
ISHII et al. (U.S. Publication No. 2020/0212286 A1) discloses the dielectric material (6, Fig. 1) may be one selected from the group consisting of a paraelectric material, a piezoelectric material, a pyroelectric material and a ferroelectric material. The dielectric material (a paraelectric material, piezoelectric material, pyroelectric material, or ferroelectric material) may be, for example, one selected from the group consisting of the following compounds 1 to 19. The thin film 6 may consist only of the dielectric material (para [0042]).
Conclusion
10. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Phuc T. Dang whose telephone number is 571-272-1776. The examiner can normally be reached on 8:00 am-5:00 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Jacob Choi can be reached on 469-295-9060. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/PHUC T DANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2897