CTNF 18/357,360 CTNF 72268 Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. DETAILED ACTION Claims 1-18 and 22-24. Claims 19- 21 have been canceled. Note that, Applicant’s amendment and arguments filed May 22, 2026, have been entered. 08-06 AIA Claim 22 is withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention , there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on October 30, 2025 . Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114 07-42-04 AIA A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on May 22, 2026 , has been entered. Objections/Rejections Withdrawn The following objections/rejections as set forth in the Office action mailed 1/29/26 have been withdrawn: The rejection of claims 1-6 and 11-18 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO2017/126554 (See English Language Machine Translation), has been withdrawn. The rejection of claims 1-6, 11-18, and 23 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO08/039730, has been withdrawn. The rejection of claim 20 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO2017/126554 or WO08/039730, and further in view of WO2014/197808, has been withdrawn. The rejection of Claims 7-10 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO2017/126554 or WO08/039730, and further in view of Hsu (US 2005/0176602), has been withdrawn. Priority 02-26 AIA Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-08-aia AIA (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. 07-12-aia AIA (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-23-aia AIA The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows: 1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art. 2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue. 3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art. 4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness. 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 1-6, 11-18, and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO2017/126554 (See English Language Machine Translation) in view of WO2020/257103 or EP3,502,225 . With respect to independent, instant claim 1, ‘554 teaches a treatment liquid that has corrosion prevention properties for a metal film disposed on a semiconductor substrate, and is also excellent in removability for an organic film on the substrate, or in removability for dry etching residues or dry ashing residues attached to the substrate. See para. 8. The treatment liquid contains water from 1 to 30 mass % relative to the total mass of the treatment liquid, a hydrophilic organic solvent from 40 to 98 mass %, and a quaternary ammonium salt from 0.1 to 30 mass %. See para. 10. The inclusion of a hydrophilic organic solvent can promote solubilization of added components, unnecessary organic matter and residues, and can further improve the corrosion prevention effect. The hydrophilic organic solvent is preferably an organic solvent that can be uniformly mixed with water in any ratio. The hydrophilic organic solvent is not particularly limited, but examples thereof include water-soluble alcohol-based solvents, water-soluble ketone-based solvents, water-soluble ester-based solvents, water-soluble ether-based solvents (e.g., glycol diether), sulfone-based solvents, sulfoxide-based solvents, nitrile-based solvents, and amide-based solvents, any of which can be used to obtain the effects desired in the present application. Suitable aliphatic monohydric alcohols include, for example, methanol, ethanol, n-propyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol, 1-butanol, 2-butanol, isobutyl alcohol, tert-butyl alcohol, 2-pentanol, t-pentyl alcohol, and 1-hexanol. Examples of sulfone-based solvents include sulfolane, 3-methylsulfolane, and 2,4-dimethylsulfolane. An example of the sulfoxide solvent is dimethyl sulfoxide. The hydrophilic organic solvents may be used alone or in appropriate combination of two or more kinds. See paras. 19-34. The treatment liquid of the present invention preferably contains a corrosion inhibitor. The corrosion inhibitor has a function of preventing over-etching of metal (eg, Co, W) that will become the wiring film. The corrosion inhibitor is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include 1,2,4-triazole (TAZ), 5-aminotetrazole (ATA), 5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole-2-thiol, 3-amino-1H-1,2,4-triazole, 3,5-diamino-1,2,4-triazole, tolyltriazole, 3-amino-5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole, 1-amino-1,2,4-triazole, 1-amino-1,2,3-triazole, 1-amino-5-methyl-1,2,3-triazole, 3-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole, 3-isopropyl-1,2,4 -Triazole, naphthotriazole, 1H-tetrazole-5-acetic acid, 2-mercaptobenzothiazole (2-MBT), 1-phenyl-2-tetrazoline-5-thione, 2-mercaptobenzimidazole (2-MBI), 4-methyl-2-phenylimidazole, etc. Other corrosion inhibitors include citric acid, oxalic acid, glycine, cysteine , etc., or combinations thereof, wherein these compounds fall within the broad scope of the chelating agent as recited by instant claim 1. The corrosion inhibitor is present in amounts from 0.01 to 5% by weight. See paras. 50-62. The treatment liquid of the present invention preferably contains an amine compound. The amine compound is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include hydroxylamine, hydroxylamine salts, and alkanolamines. Suitable alkanolamines include monoethanolamine, diethanolamine, triethanolamine, tert-butyldiethanolamine, isopropanolamine, 2-amino-1-propanol, 3-amino-1-propanol, isobutanolamine, 2-amino-2-ethoxy-propanol, and 2-amino-2-ethoxy-ethanol, also known as diglycolamine. The alkanolamines may be used alone or in combination of two or more kinds. When an alkanolamine is contained, the content thereof is preferably from 0.1 to 60 mass %, more preferably from 0.5 to 50 mass %, and even more preferably from 0.5 to 20 mass %, relative to the total mass of the treatment liquid. See paras. 65-70. The treatment liquid may further contain a chelating agent. The chelating agent chelates with oxidized metals contained in the residue. Therefore, the addition of a chelating agent improves the recyclability of the treatment liquid. The chelating agent is not particularly limited, but is preferably a polyaminopolycarboxylic acid. Polyaminopolycarboxylic acids are compounds that have multiple amino groups and multiple carboxylic acid groups. Polyaminopolycarboxylic acids include, for example, mono- or polyalkylenepolyaminepolycarboxylic acids, polyaminoalkanepolycarboxylic acids, polyaminoalkanolpolycarboxylic acids, and hydroxyalkyletherpolyaminepolycarboxylic acids. Examples of polyaminopolycarboxylic acids include butylenediaminetetraacetic acid, diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA), ethylenediaminetetrapropionic acid, triethylenetetraminehexaacetic acid, 1,3-diamino-2-hydroxypropane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid, propylenediaminetetraacetic acid, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), etc. See paras. 73-75. The lower limit of the pH of the treatment liquid of the present invention is preferably pH 7.0, more preferably pH 7.5, and particularly preferably pH 8.0. The upper limit is preferably pH 14, and more preferably pH 13.4. See para. 77. ‘554 does not teach the use of an acid such as glycolic acid or a composition containing an alcohol, an aprotic polar solvent, an azole compound, an alkanolamine, a chelating agent such as glycolic acid, water, and the other requisite components of the composition in the specific amounts as recited by independent, instant claim 1 and the respective dependent claims. ‘103 teaches compositions and methods useful for removing residue and photoresist from a semiconductor substrate comprising: from about 5 to about 60% by wt. of water; from about 10% to about 90% by wt. of a water-miscible organic solvent; from about 5 to about 90% by wt. of at least one alkanolamine; from about 0.05 to about 20% by wt. of at least one polyfunctional organic acid; and from about 0. 1 to about 10% by wt. of at least one phenol-type corrosion inhibitor, wherein the composition is substantially free of hydroxylamine. See Abstract. Suitable poyfunctional organic acids includecitric acid, glycolic acid, etc., wherein the acid function as a metal corrosion inhibitor and/or a chelating agent. See paras. 37-39. ‘225 teaches stripper solutions for removing photoresists from substrates are provided that typically have freezing points below about O °C and high loading capacities. The stripper solutions comprise dimethyl sulfoxide, quaternary ammonium hydroxide, and an alkanolamine having at least two carbon atoms, at least one amino substituent and at least one hydroxyl substituent, the amino and hydroxyl substituents attached to two different carbon atoms. Some formulations can additionally contain a secondary solvent. The formulations do not contain tetramethylammonium hydroxide. See Abstract. The compositions can also optionally contain one or more corrosion inhibitors. Suitable corrosion inhibitors include, but are not limited to, glycolic acid, lactic acid, malic acid, citric acid, acetic acid, etc. See para. 25. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to use glycolic acid in the composition taught by ‘554, with a reasonable expectation of success, because ‘103 or ‘225 teach the equivalence of citric acid to glycolic acid as a corrosion inhibitor in a similar composition and further, ‘554 teaches the use of citric acid as a corrosion inhibitor. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to formulate a composition containing an alcohol, an aprotic polar solvent, an azole compound, an alkanolamine, a chelating agent such as glycolic acid, water, and the other requisite components of the composition in the specific amounts as recited by independent, instant claim 1 and the respective dependent claims, with a reasonable expectation of success and similar results with respect to other disclosed components, because the broad teachings of ‘554 in view of ‘103 or ’225 suggest a composition containing an alcohol, an aprotic polar solvent, an azole compound, an alkanolamine, a chelating agent such as glycolic acid, water, and the other requisite components of the composition in the specific amounts as recited by independent, instant claim 1 and the respective dependent claims . 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 1-6, 11-18, 23, and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO08/039730 in view of WO2020/257103 or EP3,502,225 . With respect to independent, instant claim 1, ‘730 teaches a semi-aqueous composition comprising about 0.1 to 10% by weight of at least one alkali and/or alkaline earth metal basic salt, about 20 to 80% by weight of at least one organic solvent, about 10 to a 80% by weight of water, optionally at least one quaternary ammonium basic salt in amounts from 0 to 5% by weight, optionally at least one metal corrosion inhibitor in amounts from 0 to 20% by weight, and optionally at least one water-soluble polymer surfactant in amounts from 0 to 5% by weight, wherein said semi-aqueous composition is suitable for removing material selected from the group consisting of photoresist, antireflective coating (ARC), polymer-containing buildup, and combinations thereof, from a microelectronic device wafer having said material thereon. See para. 43 and claim 1. Suitable solvents include methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO), sulfolane, monoethanolamine, diethanolamine, triethanolamine, etc., and combinations thereof. See para. 49. Suitable corrosion inhibitors include, but are not limited to: azoles such as benzotriazole (BTA), 1,2,4-triazole (TAZ), 5-aminotetrazole (ATA), 1-hydroxybenzotriazole, citric acid; ascorbic acid; L-cysteine, etc. See para. 51. The pH of the semi-aqueous compositions may be varied to produce a composition optimized for the intended end use. In general, the pH will be basic, e.g., greater than about 10 and less than about 14, more preferably about 12 to about 14. See para. 48. ‘730 does not teach does not teach the use of an acid such as glycolic acid or a composition containing an alcohol, an aprotic polar solvent, an azole compound, an alkanolamine, a chelating agent such as glycolic acid, water, and the other requisite components of the composition in the specific amounts as recited by independent, instant claim 1 and the respective dependent claims. ‘103 and ‘225 are relied upon as set forth above. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to use glycolic acid in the composition taught by ‘730, with a reasonable expectation of success, because ‘103 or ‘225 teach the equivalence of citric acid to glycolic acid as a corrosion inhibitor in a similar composition and further, ‘730 teaches the use of citric acid as a corrosion inhibitor. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to formulate a composition containing an alcohol, an aprotic polar solvent, an azole compound, an alkanolamine, a chelating agent such as glycolic acid, water, and the other requisite components of the composition in the specific amounts as recited by independent, instant claim 1 and the respective dependent claims, with a reasonable expectation of success and similar results with respect to other disclosed components, because the broad teachings of ‘730 in view of ‘103 or ‘225 suggest a composition containing an alcohol, an aprotic polar solvent, an azole compound, an alkanolamine, a chelating agent such as glycolic acid, water, and the other requisite components of the composition in the specific amounts as recited by independent, instant claim 1 and the respective dependent claims . 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 7-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO2017/126554 or WO08/039730, both in view of WO2020/257103 or EP3,502,225, as applied to the rejected claims above, and further in view of Hsu (US 2005/0176602) . ‘554 or ‘730 are relied upon as set forth above. However, ‘554 or ‘730 do not teach the use of sulfolene in addition to the other requisite components of the composition as recited by the instant claims. Hsu teach cleaning compositions suitable for cleaning microelectronic structures having silicon dioxide, low-k or high-k di-electrics and copper or aluminum metallizations contain a polar organic solvent selected from amides, sulfones, sulfolenes, selenones saturated alcohols, etc., and a strong alkaline base. See Abstract. Among the preferred solvents there may be mentioned sulfolane (tetrahydrothiopene-1,1-dioxide- ), 3-methylsulfolane, n-propyl sulfone, n-butyl sulfone, sulfolene (2,5dihydrothiopene-1,1-dioxide), 3methylsulfolene, amides such as 1-(2-hydroxyethyl) -2-pyrrolidinone (HEP), dimethylpiperidone (DMPD), N-methyl pyrrolidinone (NMP), etc. The organic solvent component can include one or more of the solvents and is generally present in the composition in an amount of from about 1 to about 99.9 wt %, preferably in an amount of from about 10 to about 90 wt %, and most preferably in an amount of from about 30 to 80 wt %. See para. 12. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to use sulfolene in the composition taught by ‘554 or ‘730, with a reasonable expectation of success, because Hsu teaches the equivalence of sulfolene to sulfolane as an organic solvent in a similar composition and further, ‘554 or ‘730 teaches the use of sulfolane . Response to Arguments Note that, Applicant’s arguments are moot since all prior art rejection(s) set forth in the Office action mailed January 29, 2026, have been withdrawn and a new ground(s) of rejection has been made, as set forth above, which was necessitated by Applicant’s amendment. Note that, WO2020/257103 or EP3,502,225 have both been relied upon as secondary references for their teaching of glycolic acid, etc., as set forth above. Conclusion 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Remaining references cited but not relied upon are considered to be cumulative to or less pertinent than those relied upon or discussed above . Applicant is reminded that any evidence to be presented in accordance with 37 CFR 1.131 or 1.132 should be submitted before final rejection in order to be considered timely. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GREGORY R DEL COTTO whose telephone number is (571)272-1312. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, 8:30am-6:00pm, 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, Angela Brown-Pettigrew can be reached at (571) 272-2817. 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. /GREGORY R DELCOTTO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1761 /G.R.D/May 27, 2026 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 2 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 3 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 4 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 5 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 6 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 7 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 8 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 9 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 10 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 11 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 12 Art Unit: 1761 Application/Control Number: 18/357,360 Page 13 Art Unit: 1761
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