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 Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
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.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 6, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cecil et al. US 2021/0018831 A1 (“Cecil”) in view of Kang et al. US 2020/0192996 A1 (“Kang”).
As to claim 1, Cecil discloses a method of forming a photomask, comprising:
providing a target pattern (Cecil Figures 21-24 or Paragraph 123 – e.g., a desired polygon or polygons);
generating a first offset pattern according to the target pattern and a first offset value (Cecil Figures 21-24 or Paragraph 124-127 – e.g., determination of an offset);
generating a second offset pattern according to the first offset pattern and a second offset value (Cecil Figures 21-24 or Paragraph 124-127 – e.g., determination of multiple offsets, in combination with Kang – see below);
operating the first offset pattern and the second offset pattern with a Boolean operation to obtain a first assist feature (Cecil Figures 21-24 or Paragraph 124-127 – e.g., taking aggregate values of offsets and implementing assist features); and
outputting the target pattern and the first assist feature to form the photomask (Cecil Figure 25 – e.g., the goal of the offset and assist feature steps is to manufacture a photomask and chip).
Cecil discloses many of the elements of claim 1, including the generation of offsets and assist features. Cecil teaches generating multiple offsets based off of the target pattern, rather than generating some offsets based in part on other offsets. However, the missing element is well known in the art because while disclosing an OPC methos, Kang discloses a process in which mask data is iteratively optimized based on previous iterations (Kang Figures 1 or 11 or Paragraph 60). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to use iterative changes, as in Kang, in the offset generation of Cecil, because doing so would allow the method to analyze the previous offsets/versions in order to more accurately calculate updated versions.
As to claim 2, Cecil and Kang disclose the method of claim 1. Cecil and Kang further disclose wherein the target pattern and the first assist feature define a light-transmitting region of the photornask (Cecil Paragraphs 3 or 40-41 or Kang Paragraph 3 – e.g., use of lithography and masks).
As to claim 6, Cecil and Kang disclose the method of claim 1. Cecil discloses determining offsets and using those offsets to form assist features (Cecil Paragraphs 124-127) and Kang discloses forming closed patterns according to design analysis (Kang Figures 5A-B or Paragraph 60). The examiner notes that a feature in a circuit design or mask necessarily forms a closed pattern. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made for each of the first offset pattern, the second offset pattern and the first assist feature comprises a closed pattern because doing so would allow the design to be evaluated and/or manufactured.
Claim 20 recites elements similar to claim 1, and is rejected for the same reasons. The examiner notes that Cecil and Kang disclose the use of lithography/etch and manufacturing (Cecil Paragraphs 3 or 40-41, or Kang Paragraph 3).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-5 and 7-11 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, and if withdrawn claims 12-19 are cancelled.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art does not teach or suggest a method of forming a photomask having the combination of steps of the claims including, among other elements, the offset details of the claims, in combination with the generation and calculation elements of the claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRYCE M AISAKA whose telephone number is (571)270-5808. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 6:30AM-5:00PM PT.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jack Chiang can be reached at (571)272-7483. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRYCE M AISAKA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2851
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