DETAILED ACTION
This office action is in response to the amendment filed 1/8/2026.
Currently, claims 1-2, 4-11 and 13-22 are pending. Claims 19-20 remain withdrawn from consideration.
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 1-2, 4-11, 13-18 and 21-22 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 claim(s) contains 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(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Independent claims 1 and 10 have both been amended to recite “an etch stop layer on the source/drain regions but not on the gate body”. This limitation is not supported by the original disclosure. The term “on” has a specific meaning in the disclosure, as discussed in para. [0023] (emphasis added):
It will be understood that when an element such as a layer, region, or substrate is referred
to as being "on" or "over" another element, it may be directly on the other element or intervening
elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly on,"
"directly contacting" or "directly over" another element, there may be no intervening elements
present.
As discussed in the cited paragraph, one element is considered to be “on” another element when there is an intervening element therebetween. This describes the relationship between the etch stop layer 130 and the gate body 122, with sidewall spacers 124 intervening therebetween. Therefore, contrary to the claims, the disclosure shows the etch stop layer is on the source/drain regions and on the gate body. There is no disclosed etch stop layer that is on the source/drain regions but not on the gate body in accordance with the definition of “on” described in the specification. Thus, such a limitation is considered to be new matter.
Claims 2, 4-9, 11, 13-18 and 21-22 recite the same limitation via dependency.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 1/8/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant’s argues that the cited references do not teach “an etch stop layer on the source/drain regions but not on the gate body”.
In response, this limitation is new matter as discussed above and thus leads to rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112(a).
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) 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 DANIEL M LUKE whose telephone number is (571)270-1569. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm, EST.
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/DANIEL LUKE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2896