Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/346,634

SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE AND METHOD FOR FABRICATING THE SAME

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jul 03, 2023
Examiner
MOVVA, AMAR
Art Unit
2898
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
SK Hynix Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
79%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 11m
To Grant
94%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 79% — above average
79%
Career Allow Rate
606 granted / 764 resolved
+11.3% vs TC avg
Strong +15% interview lift
Without
With
+15.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 11m
Avg Prosecution
18 currently pending
Career history
782
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.0%
-39.0% vs TC avg
§103
48.0%
+8.0% vs TC avg
§102
33.6%
-6.4% vs TC avg
§112
13.8%
-26.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 764 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 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 Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention II species B (claims 1-10) in the reply filed on FILLIN "Enter mail date of the reply." \* MERGEFORMAT is acknowledged. 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) 1-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated FILLIN "Insert either—clearly anticipated—or—anticipated—with an explanation at the end of the paragraph." \d "[ 3 ]" by Kim (US 2020/0287131) . [claim 1 ] A semiconductor device (fig. 6A,6B , 7 ) , comprising: a substrate (100, fig. 6B) ; a plurality of memory cells (MC, fig. 6B , electrodes 110A and 150A may optionally may not be included in the memory cell ) positioned over the substrate, each of the plurality of memory cells having a multi-layer structure (fig. 6B) including a memory pattern (140, fig. 6B) ; a sealing layer pattern (160A, fig. 6B, [0053]) filling a lower portion of a space (void V, fig. 6B) between the memory cells, the lower portion being positioned below a bottom surface of the memory pattern; a liner layer pattern (160B, fig. 6B , [0054] ) formed along a surface of an upper portion of the space to partially fill the upper portion; and a dielectric layer (170A, fig. 6B, [0078]) pattern filling a remaining portion of the space unfilled by the sealing layer pattern and the liner layer pattern. [claim 2 ] The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein a height of an upper surface of the sealing layer pattern at a first distance (height of 161a at the very top of 150A which is on a slanted upper surface, fig. 6B) from the memory cell is greater than a height of the upper surface of the sealing layer pattern at a second distance (height of 161a of the upper surface of 161A at the bottom of the void V, note that upper surface of the slanted portion can only have the first distance less than the thickness of layer 161A while the second distance can be measured from the middle of the upper surface at the second height at the bottom of void V) , the second distance being greater than the first distance (fig. 6b) . [claim 3 ] The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein a thermal conductivity of the dielectric layer pattern is lower than a thermal conductivity of the liner layer pattern and a thermal conductivity of the sealing layer pattern [0068] . [claim 4 ] The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the liner layer pattern covers a sidewall of the memory pattern (fig. 6b) . [claim 5 ] The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the memory cell further includes a selector pattern (120A, fig. 6B, [0048]) positioned below the memory pattern, and wherein the sealing layer pattern covers a sidewall of the selector pattern (fig. 6B) . [claim 6 ] The semiconductor device of claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of lower conductive lines ( WL1 , 110A, fig. 7, 6B [0086 ]) extending in a first direction; and a plurality of upper conductive lines (CBL, 150A fig. 7, 6B [0086]) extending in a second direction crossing the first direction, wherein the memory cells overlap with intersections between the lower conductive lines and the upper conductive lines (fig. 7) . [claim 7 ] The semiconductor device of claim 6, wherein the sealing layer pattern includes a first sealing layer pattern (sealing layer between two MCs in the CBL direction in fig. 7, see also fig. 6A) positioned between the memory cells neighboring in the second direction, and a second sealing layer pattern (sealing layer between two MCs in the WL direction in fig. 7, see also fig. 6A) positioned between the memory cells neighboring in the first direction, and wherein the first sealing layer pattern further fills a space between the lower conductive lines (between 110A of the conductive lines fig. 6B) . [claim 8 ] The semiconductor device of claim 6, wherein the liner layer pattern includes a first liner layer pattern (liner layer between two MCs in the CBL direction in fig. 7, see also fig. 6A) positioned between the memory cells neighboring in the second direction, and a second liner layer (liner layer between two MCs in the WL direction in fig. 7, see also fig. 6A) pattern positioned between the memory cells neighboring in the first direction, and wherein the second liner layer pattern is further formed on sidewalls of the upper conductive lines (fig. 6B) . [claim 9 ] The semiconductor device of claim 6, wherein the dielectric layer pattern includes a first dielectric layer pattern (dielectric layer between two MCs in the CBL direction in fig. 7, see also fig. 6A) positioned between the memory cells neighboring in the second direction, and a second dielectric layer pattern ( dielectric layer between two MCs in the WL direction in fig. 7, see also fig. 6A) positioned between the memory cells neighboring in the first direction, and wherein the second dielectric layer pattern is further positioned between the upper conductive lines (fig. 6B) . [claim 10 ] The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the memory pattern includes a phase-change pattern [0037] . Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT AMAR MOVVA whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-9009 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM . 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Julio Maldonado can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT 571-272-1864 . 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. /AMAR MOVVA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2898
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jul 03, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 25, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12598743
MEMORY CELL, NONVOLATILE SEMICONDUCTOR STORAGE DEVICE, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING NONVOLATILE SEMICONDUCTOR STORAGE DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12599035
DISPLAY DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12588257
2D LAYERED GATE OXIDE
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 24, 2026
Patent 12581648
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES AND DATA STORAGE SYSTEMS INCLUDING THE SAME
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12581645
SEMICONDUCTOR MEMORY DEVICES
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

AI Strategy Recommendation

Get an AI-powered prosecution strategy using examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Powered by AI — typically takes 5-10 seconds

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
79%
Grant Probability
94%
With Interview (+15.1%)
2y 11m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 764 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month