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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 2/29/2024 was filed. 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 Objections
Claim 12 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 12, line 1. The limitation of “claim 1” should be corrected into “claim 11”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 1-4, 9-14 and 19-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chu (US 2018/0375024) in view of Lee (US 2015/0162529), and further in view of Lu (US 2013/0214236).
Regarding claim 1, Chu discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, a resistive random access memory device, comprising:
a substrate (102, [23]);
a dielectric layer (204, [23]) disposed on the substrate (102, [23]);
a conductive via (202, [23]) disposed in the dielectric layer (204, [23]);
a metal nitride layer (206/208, [24]) disposed on the conductive via (202, [23]);
a resistive switching layer (212, [25]) disposed on the metal nitride layer (206/208, [24]); and
a metal oxynitride layer (116, [27]) disposed on the resistive switching layer (212, [25]), wherein the metal oxynitride layer (116, [27]) has a gradient concentration along a thickness direction of the metal oxynitride layer (116, [27]) (figures).
Chu does not explicitly disclose the metal nitride has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal nitride layer; the metal oxynitride layer has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal oxynitride layer.
Lee teaches, in at least figures 1, 3A, and related text, the device comprising the metal nitride (110, [42], [56]) has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction (vertical direction, figures) of the metal nitride layer (110, [42], [56]), for the purpose of providing switch element having excellent switching characteristics and reliability ([6]).
Lu teaches, in at least figures 4, 4A, and related text, the device comprising the metal oxynitride layer (402, [59], [60]) has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction (vertical direction, figures) of the metal oxynitride layer (402, [59], [60]), for the purpose of providing resistive memory (ReRAM) device that can be formed in a single deposition chamber ([43]) thereby reducing cost.
Chu, Lee, and Lu are analogous art because they all are directed to semiconductor device and one of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation of success to modify Chu with the specified features of Lee and Lu because they are from the same field of endeavor.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the structure disclosed in Chu to have the metal nitride having a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal nitride layer, as taught by Lee and the metal oxynitride layer having a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal oxynitride layer, as taught by Lu, for the purpose of providing switch element having excellent switching characteristics and reliability ([6], Lee) and providing resistive memory (ReRAM) device that can be formed in a single deposition chamber ([43], Lu) thereby reducing cost.
Regarding claim 2, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the resistive random access memory device according to claim 1 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, the resistive switching layer (212, [25]) comprises a HfO2 layer.
Regarding claim 3, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the resistive random access memory device according to claim 1 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B, 9, and related text, the HfO2 layer (212 (902), [25], [47]) has a thickness of about 50 angstroms.
Regarding claim 4, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the resistive random access memory device according to claim 1 as described above.
Lu further teaches, in at least figures 4, 4A, and related text, the metal oxynitride layer (402, [59], [60]) comprises TiOxNy or TaOxNy, wherein x is between 0-1 and y is between 0-1, for the purpose of providing resistive memory (ReRAM) device that can be formed in a single deposition chamber ([43]) thereby reducing cost.
Regarding claim 9, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the resistive random access memory device according to claim 1 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, the conductive via (202, [23]) is a tungsten via ([23]).
Regarding claim 10, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the resistive random access memory device according to claim 1 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, the conductive via (202, [23]) is in direct contact with the metal nitride layer (206/208, [24]).
Regarding claim 11, Chu discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, a method for forming a resistive random access memory device, comprising:
providing a substrate (102, [23]);
forming a dielectric layer (204, [23]) on the substrate (102, [23]);
forming a conductive via (202, [23]) in the dielectric layer (204, [23]);
forming a metal nitride layer (206/208, [24]) on the conductive via (202, [23]);
forming a resistive switching layer (212, [25]) on the metal nitride layer (206/208, [24]); and
forming a metal oxynitride layer (116, [27]) on the resistive switching layer (212, [25]), wherein the metal oxynitride layer (116, [27]) has a gradient concentration along a thickness direction of the metal oxynitride layer (116, [27]) (figures).
Chu does not explicitly disclose the metal nitride has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal nitride layer; the metal oxynitride layer has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal oxynitride layer.
Lee teaches, in at least figures 1, 3A, and related text, the method comprising the metal nitride (110, [42], [56]) has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction (vertical direction, figures) of the metal nitride layer (110, [42], [56]), for the purpose of providing switch element having excellent switching characteristics and reliability ([6]).
Lu teaches, in at least figures 4, 4A, and related text, the method comprising the metal oxynitride layer (402, [59], [60]) has a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction (vertical direction, figures) of the metal oxynitride layer (402, [59], [60]), for the purpose of providing resistive memory (ReRAM) device that can be formed in a single deposition chamber ([43]) thereby reducing cost.
Chu, Lee, and Lu are analogous art because they all are directed to method for forming a semiconductor device and one of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation of success to modify Chu with the specified features of Lee and Lu because they are from the same field of endeavor.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method disclosed in Chu to have the metal nitride having a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal nitride layer, as taught by Lee and the metal oxynitride layer having a gradient nitrogen concentration along a thickness direction of the metal oxynitride layer, as taught by Lu, for the purpose of providing switch element having excellent switching characteristics and reliability ([6], Lee) and providing resistive memory (ReRAM) device that can be formed in a single deposition chamber ([43], Lu) thereby reducing cost.
Regarding claim 12, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the method according to claim 1 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, the resistive switching layer (212, [25]) comprises a HfO2 layer.
Regarding claim 13, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the method according to claim 12 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B, 9, and related text, the HfO2 layer (212 (902), [25], [47]) has a thickness of about 50 angstroms.
Regarding claim 14, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the method according to claim 11 as described above.
Lu further teaches, in at least figures 4, 4A, and related text, the metal oxynitride layer (402, [59], [60]) comprises TiOxNy or TaOxNy, wherein x is between 0-1 and y is between 0-1, for the purpose of providing resistive memory (ReRAM) device that can be formed in a single deposition chamber ([43]) thereby reducing cost.
Regarding claim 19, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the method according to claim 11 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, the conductive via (202, [23]) is a tungsten via ([23]).
Regarding claim 20, Chu in view of Lee and Lu discloses the method according to claim 11 as described above.
Chu further discloses, in at least figures 2-3B and related text, the conductive via (202, [23]) is in direct contact with the metal nitride layer (206/208, [24]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-6 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because the prior art of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitations of the base claims 1 and 5 that recite "an oxygen-rich TiOxNy layer adjacent to the resistive switching layer, wherein x is greater than 0.5 and y is smaller than 0.5" in combination with other elements of the base claims 1 and 5.
Claims 7-8 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because the prior art of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitations of the base claims 1 and 7 that recite "a nitrogen-rich TiOxNy layer, wherein x is smaller than 0.5 and y is greater than 0.5" in combination with other elements of the base claims 1 and 7.
Claims 15-16 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because the prior art of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitations of the base claims 11 and 15 that recite "an oxygen-rich TiOxNy layer adjacent to the resistive switching layer, wherein x is greater than 0.5 and y is smaller than 0.5" in combination with other elements of the base claims 11 and 15.
Claims 17-18 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because the prior art of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitations of the base claims 11 and 17 that recite "a nitrogen-rich TiOxNy layer, wherein x is smaller than 0.5 and y is greater than 0.5" in combination with other elements of the base claims 11 and 17.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/TONG-HO KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2811