DETAILED ACTION
This Office Action is in response to Amendment filed May 18, 2026.
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the configuration where “the first opening is an oblique columnar opening having a vertical section that is an inclined parallelogram” as recited on lines 8-9 of the amended claim 1, while “an area of an orthographic projection of the open end of the base is less than an area of an orthographic projection of the first opening on the base” as recited on lines 10-12 of the amended claim 1 must be shown or the features canceled from the claim, because as discussed below under 35 USC 112(a) and 112(b) rejections, these two limitations are self-contradictory to each other. No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1, 3 and 9-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claims contain subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor, at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Regarding claim 1, Applicant originally disclosed in paragraph [0053] of current application that “In this embodiment, when the first opening 110 is formed, one first opening 110 is provided, and the first opening 110 is an oblique columnar opening 111”, and that “The vertical section of the oblique columnar opening 111 is an inclined parallelogram”, which is the only sentence where Applicant mentioned the word “parallelogram” in the original disclosure. In addition, Applicant originally disclosed in paragraph [0041] of current application that “the first opening 110 includes an open end 110a, an area of an orthographic projection of the open end 110a on the base 10 is less than an area of an orthographic projection of the first opening 110 on the base 10”, in paragraph [0051] of current application that “In step S12, continue to refer to FIG. 2, the first mask layer 11 is formed on the base 10, and the first opening 110 exposing the base 10 is formed in the first mask layer 11, where the first opening 110 includes the open end 110a, such that the area of the orthographic projection of the open end 110a on the plane in which the base 10 is located is less than the area of the orthographic projection of the first opening 110 on the plane in which the base 10 is located”, in paragraph [0120] of current application that “The various shapes of the first openings 110 in the embodiments make the area of the orthographic projection of the open end 110a on the base 10 smaller than the area of the orthographic projection of the first opening 110 on the base 10 (emphasis added)”, and in paragraph [0125] of current application that “The area of the orthographic projection of the open end of the first opening in the first mask layer on the substrate is less than the area of the orthographic projection of the first opening on the substrate.” However, Applicant did not originally disclose the configuration where “the first opening is an oblique columnar opening having a vertical section that is an inclined parallelogram” as recited on lines 8-9 of the amended claim 1, while “an area of an orthographic projection of the open end of the base is less than an area of an orthographic projection of the first opening on the base” as recited on lines 10-12 of the amended claim 1, because (a) Applicants originally disclosed some configurations without specifically disclosing whether the plurality of configurations can be combined to come up with a certain first opening, (b) for example, Applicants did not originally disclose that the two characteristics of “the first opening” being “an oblique columnar opening having a vertical section that is an inclined parallelogram” and “an area of an orthographic projection of the open end of the base” “less than an area of an orthographic projection of the first opening on the base” can be present simultaneously or combined in a single semiconductor structure, (c) rather, these two limitations are self-contradictory since (i) the first opening having the vertical section that is an inclined parallelogram should resemble the shape shown on the left side of the illustration provided below, and (ii) however, the first opening with the claimed two different areas of the orthographic projection should resemble the shape shown on the right side of the illustration provided below, which are distinct from the shape of the inclined parallelogram, and
PNG
media_image1.png
180
248
media_image1.png
Greyscale
(d) theefore, Applicant did not originally disclose the configuration where “the first opening is an oblique columnar opening having a vertical section that is an inclined parallelogram”, while “an area of an orthographic projection of the open end of the base is less than an area of an orthographic projection of the first opening on the base”, and these self-contradictory limitations may also fail to comply with the Enablement requirement. Claims 3 and 9-12 depend on claim 1, and therefore, claims 3 and 9-12 also fail to comply with the written description requirement.
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1, 3 and 9-12 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Regarding claim 1, it is not clear how the configuration where “the first opening is an oblique columnar opening having a vertical section that is an inclined parallelogram” as recited on lines 8-9 of the amended claim 1 can also comprise the configuration where “an area of an orthographic projection of the open end of the base is less than an area of an orthographic projection of the first opening on the base” as recited on lines 10-12 of the amended claim 1, because (a) as discussed above under 35 USC 112(a) rejection, the two limitations cited above appear to be directed to distinct embodiments that cannot be combined into a single semiconductor structure, especially when the claimed features are contradictory to each other, and (b) therefore, it is not clear how the claimed first opening can have the two self-contradictory features, and it is not clear whether the term “parallelogram” is not necessarily an actual parallelogram, but rather a shape that resembles a parallelogram. Claims 3 and 9-12 depend on claim 1, and therefore, claims 3 and 9-12 are also indefinite.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Xie et al. (US 8,928,006)
Liu et al. (US 8,482,103)
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new grounds of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAY C KIM whose telephone number is (571) 270-1620. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM EST.
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, Joshua Benitez can be reached at (571) 270-1435. 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.
/JAY C KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2815
/J. K./Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2815 June 9, 2026
Prosecution Insights