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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 5, 12, 13, & 15, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
In claim 5, 12, 13, & 15, reciting “- - and the like” is not distinctly claim and causing ambiguousness of claim limitations and not positively limiting claim.
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) 1-6 & 8-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chow et al. (US 20160364653).
Regarding claim 1, Chow discloses that a superconductor-constriction-superconductor Josephson junction (ScS JJ) qubit 1. device for use in a quantum information processing environment, the qubit device comprising:
a substrate 101 (Fig. 4);
a first superconducting pad 404 (para. 0053, note: a super conducting material) formed on the substrate 101; and
a second superconducting pad 404 formed on the substrate, the second superconducting pad coupled to and coplanar with the first superconducting pad 404 (Fig. 4).
Reclaim 2, Chow discloses that the substrate is selected from the group consisting of a semiconductor substrate, an insulator substrate, and a dielectric substrate (para. 0040, silicon, sapphire).
Reclaim 3, Chow discloses that the first superconducting pad 404 is coupled to the second superconducting pad via 404 a thin bridge of superconducting material coplanar 403 with the first superconducting pad and the second superconducting pad (Fig. 4).
Reclaim 4, Chow discloses that the first superconducting pad, the second superconducting pad, and the thin bridge are comprised of the same thin film superconducting material (Fig. 4, para. 0031).
Reclaim 5, Chow discloses that the thin film superconducting material is selected from the group consisting of Al, Nb, Ta, TiN, NbN, CoSi2, PtSi, V3Si and the like (para. 0031).
Regarding claim 6, Chow discloses that a superconducting qubit device for use in a quantum computing environment, the superconducting qubit device comprising:
a substrate 101;
a superconductor-constriction-superconductor Josephson junction 403 (ScS JJ) qubit device formed on the substrate 101;
a shunting capacitor 404 (para. 0047, note: a coupling capacitor pad) formed on the substrate and in communication with the ScS JJ qubit device;
a microwave resonator 402 formed on the substrate and in communication with at least one of the shunting capacitor 404 and the ScS JJ qubit device; and
a microwave waveguide 402 formed on the substrate and in communication with the microwave resonator (para. 0027).
Reclaim 7, Chow discloses that the ScS JJ qubit device, the shunting capacitor, the microwave resonator 402, and the microwave waveguide (para. 0027) are coplanar with each other on the substrate 101.
Reclaim 8, Chow discloses that the ScS JJ qubit device comprises a first superconducting pad formed on the substrate 404 and a second superconducting pad 404 formed on the substrate 101, the second superconducting pad coupled to and coplanar with the first superconducting pad (Fig. 4).
Reclaim 9, Chow discloses that the first superconducting pad is coupled to the second superconducting pad via a thin bridge of superconducting material 403 coplanar with the first superconducting pad and the second superconducting pad (Fig. 4).
Reclaim 10, Chow discloses that the first superconducting pad 404, the second superconducting pad 404, and the thin bridge 403 are comprised of the same thin film superconducting material (Fig. 4).
Reclaim 12, Chow discloses that the thin film superconducting material is selected from the group consisting of Al, Nb, Ta, TiN, NbN, CoSi₂, PtSi, V₃Si, (para. 0031) and the like.
Reclaim 13, Chow discloses that the superconducting qubit device is selected from the group consisting of a transmon qubit, a fluxonium qubit, a phase qubit (para. 0031), and the like.
Regarding claim 14, Chow discloses that a method of forming a superconducting device including a superconductorconstriction-superconductor Josephson junction (ScS JJ) qubit device for use in a quantum information processing environment, the method comprising:
depositing a featureless superconducting film (para. 0031) on a semiconductor substrate;
casting a pattern resist of the superconducting device including the ScS JJ over the superconducting film (para. 0111);
transferring the pattern resist to the superconducting film (para. 0111); and
removing any residual pattern resist forming the superconducting device (para 0111).
Reclaim 15, Chow discloses that the superconducting film is selected from the group consisting of Al, Nb, Ta, TiN, NbN, CoSi₂, PtSi, V3Si, and the like (para. 0031).
Reclaim 16, Chow discloses that the ScS JJ includes a first superconducting pad, a second superconducting pad coplanar with the first superconducting pad, and a thin bridge of superconducting material 403 coupled to and coplanar with the first superconducting pad 404 and the second superconducting pad 404 (Fig. 4).
Reclaim 17, Chow discloses that forming the superconducting device pattern in the pattern resist by using one of a group consisting of photolithography, e-beam lithography, and direct laser writing (para. 0111).
Reclaim 18, Chow discloses that the superconducting device pattern includes a pattern of the ScS JJ qubit device, a shunting capacitor, a microwave resonator, and a microwave waveguide formed on the semiconductor substrate such that the ScS JJ qubit device, a shunting capacitor, a microwave resonator, and a microwave waveguide and in communication with the microwave resonator.
Reclaim 19, Chow discloses that the pattern resist is transferred to the superconducting film using a method selected from the group consisting of wet chemical etching, reactive ion etching, and ion milling (para. 0110-0111).
Claim(s) 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Holmes et al. (US 20230210019).
Regarding claim 20, Holmes discloses that a method of forming a superconducting device including a superconductorconstriction-superconductor Josephson junction (ScS JJ) qubit device for use in a quantum computing environment, the method comprising:
covering a semiconductor substrate 110 with a pattern resist of the superconducting device220 including the ScS JJ forming a patterned substrate (para. 0034);
depositing a thin film superconducting material over the patterned substrate 120-130; and
lifting off the pattern resist 220 and thin film superconducting material deposited on the pattern resist using a solvent (para. 0034, note: etching require etchant as a solvent).
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.
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) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chow et al. (US 20160364653).
Reclaim 11, Chow fails to specify that the thin bridge having a coherence length of about 100 nm .
However, notwithstanding, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been led to the recited dimensions through routine experimentation and optimization.
Before effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to use a certain length of bridge, because it would have been to obtain a certain length of bridge to achieve sufficient length to detect electron or qubits.
Conclusion
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/SU C KIM/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2899