DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Election/Restrictions
2. Applicant’s election without traverse of Group 1, claims 1-14 in the reply filed on 11/17/2025 is acknowledged. Claims 15-20 are withdrawn.
Information Disclosure Statement
3. The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 1/9/2026 and 2/3/2026 were filed timely. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
4. 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.
5. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
6. Claims 1-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over (US 2013/0075253 A1) to Hadidi et al. (hereinafter Hadidi) in view of the teachings of (TW 201724197 A) to Sant (hereinafter Sant) in further view of the teachings of (US 2019/0078200 A1) to Wu et al. (hereinafter Wu).
Hadidi is directed semiconductor processing methods. Hadidi discloses at paragraph [0012] that an improved processing chamber made of titanium diborane that is resistant to fluorine atoms. Hadidi discloses at paragraph [0019] that the chamber is used for semiconductor processing. Hadidi discloses at paragraph [0027] that an intermediate layer comprising a titanium metal and nitrogen is coated, which can include a titanium dioxide.
Sant is directed semiconductor processing methods. Hadidi and Sant are both directed semiconductor processing methods and therefore are analogous art. Sant teaches that an aluminum oxide as the metal containing precursor. Sant teaches in the Abstract that it is a support for supporting the substrate within the processing chamber and has a fluoride coating.
Wu is directed semiconductor processing methods. Hadidi and Wu are both directed semiconductor processing methods and therefore are analogous art. Wu teaches at paragraph [0055] that the oxygen precursor is from pure oxygen or water. Wu teaches at paragraph [0020] that a coating of yttrium oxyfluoride is used. Wu teaches at paragraph [0106] that hydrogen fluoride may be used as a precursor. Wu teaches at paragraph [0103] that the temperatures are below 1000C.
It would be obvious to one skilled in the art at the time of the filing of the disclosure of Hadidi in view of the teachings of Sant and Wu to provide the processing method that forms a prime facie case of obviousness for claims 1-14.
Conclusion
7. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEFFREY D WASHVILLE whose telephone number is (571)270-3262. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5.
8. 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.
9. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Randy Gulakowski can be reached at 571-272-1302. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
10. 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.
/JEFFREY D WASHVILLE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1766
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