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 .
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) 1-2, 4-10, and 12-20, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U. S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0066319 (hereinafter referred to as Hatakeyama).
Hatakeyama, in the abstract, [0018], [0034], [0054],[0055], [0095], [0097], and [0105], discloses a photoresist composition that includes a polymer main chain (base polymer, claimed base resin), an acid generator, a salt (quencher, claimed carboxylate salt) that includes a carboxylate ion as the anion moiety and a sulfonium ion as the cation moiety, and an organic solvent, wherein the salt is a quencher and suppresses acid diffusion (acts as a quenching base) and the salt has the following general formula, see below,
PNG
media_image1.png
119
238
media_image1.png
Greyscale
, wherein R4 is a hydrocarbyl group that includes the sulfonamide group, as disclosed on page 45, of Hatakeyama, see below,
PNG
media_image2.png
225
101
media_image2.png
Greyscale
, and is the same structure wherein the claimed A11 is the aromatic group (C6H5-aryl group), claimed R12 is hydrogen, claimed R11 is CF3 , claimed a11 and a12 include zero, claimed n11 and n12 include 1, and the claimed M+ is the sulfonium cation, and is the same structure and composition as recited in claims 1-2, 4-7, 12, 14-15, and is the same structure as the 2nd structure in the first row, recited under Group I in claim 13. Hatakeyama, in [0113], discloses the cation moiety of the salt includes a sulfonium cation, and on page 56, on page 57, and on page 60, see below,
PNG
media_image3.png
219
237
media_image3.png
Greyscale
,
PNG
media_image4.png
214
205
media_image4.png
Greyscale
,
PNG
media_image5.png
217
198
media_image5.png
Greyscale
,
PNG
media_image6.png
228
254
media_image6.png
Greyscale
and is the same as the sulfonium cations recited in claims 8-10. Hatakeyama, in [0005], and [0115], discloses that the salt (sulfonium salt with carboxylate anion) can be used as a photoacid generator i.e. it is photodegradable and can generate acid upon exposure to light (claim 16). Hatakeyama, in [0034], discloses that the resist composition can further comprise another quencher (claim 17). Hatakeyama, in Table 1, disclose that the quencher can be in the composition in an amount of 4.86 parts by mass based on 100 parts by mass of the base polymer (claim 18). Hatakeyama, in [0181]-[0188], discloses that the photoresist composition is applied onto a substrate to form a resist film that is subjected to selective exposure to high energy radiation such as DUV, or EUV or electron beam (EB), and then developed to form a resist pattern on the substrate (claims 19-20).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, and 11, are 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remarks, filed, April 16, 2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-20 under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1), made in the previous office action have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made over pending claims, see paragraph no. 3, above.
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 May 28, 2026.
Prosecution Insights