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 .
Claim Objections
Claim(s) 8 is/are objected to because of the following informalities:
(a) in claim 8, “the NbN superconducting thin film” on lines 3-4 should probably be --the NbN superconducting thin films-- (antecedent basis).
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation 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.
Claim(s) 1 and 5-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 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 pre-AIA the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
While the specification discloses a 59 sccm Ar flow rate for ion cleaning by an argon ion beam (e.g., see “… Ion cleaning parameter … Vacuum degree (x10-8 Torr) … 3.6 … Ar flowrate (sccm) … 59 … Ion source power (W) … 50 … Working pressure (mTorr) … 10 … Time (s) … 180 …” in the “TABLE 1” cited by applicant and also described as “… Before presputtering, ion cleaning is carried out on the substrate for 1-3 min to remove impurity ions from the surface of the substrate, wherein an argon ion beam is used for the ion cleaning, the ion cleaning is performed in a vacuum environment under the vacuum degree of less than 5.0x10-8 Torr, the argon flow rate of 20-100 sccm …” on pg. 6, lines 22+), there does not appear to be any disclosure of providing metal Nb targets and Si-based substrates, fixing the Si-based substrates at room temperature, adjusting the mass flow ratio of N2/Ar to 20%-25%, a sputtering power to 200-300W, a deposition pressure to 3.0-8.0 mTorr, and NbN superconducting thin films with a stress range of -100MPa~100MPa and a thickness of 70-150nm are deposited on the Si-based substrates; wherein Ar flow rate is 59 sccm. Therefore, there does not appear to be a written description of the claim limitation “providing metal Nb targets and Si-based substrates, fixing the Si-based substrates at room temperature, adjusting the mass flow ratio of N2/Ar to 20%-25%[[40%]], a sputtering power to 200-300W, a deposition pressure to 3.0-8.0-100MPa~100MPa; wherein Ar flow rate is 59 sccm” in the application as filed.
Claim(s) dependent on the claim(s) discussed above also fail(s) to comply with the written description requirement for the same reasons.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the amended claims have been fully considered but are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection.
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.
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/SL/
Examiner, Art Unit 2884
/DAVID J MAKIYA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2884
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