DETAILED ACTION
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 § 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) 1-18, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by U. S. Patent Application Publication No. 2023/0266670 (hereinafter referred to as Hansen).
Hansen, in the abstract, in [0007], [0028], [0083]-[0085], [0181]-[0184], and [0204], discloses a lithography process of patterning a EUV sensitive film, the process includes coating a substrate with an underlying layer (target layer), depositing an imaging layer (photoresist composition layer, metal-based photoresist) over the underlying layer wherein the imaging layer is an EUV sensitive film that comprises metal-oxide material, subjecting the imaging layer to exposure (exposed to EUV, [0105]) to produce exposed and unexposed regions. Hansen, in [0106], discloses a post-exposure bake can be performed on the exposed film. Hansen, in [0008]-[0014], discloses developing radiation patterned film(exposed and unexposed regions) using a developer mixture that includes a developer (solvent) and a metal chelator (additive), wherein the metal chelator includes a cation (metal cation) and the additive in the developer includes COO⁻ ions (RCO2H additive in the developer solvent, the anions), to form a patterned resist mask on the substrate. Hansen, in [0107], discloses that the exposed film can be exposed to a chemical such as Br2 or Cl2 prior to development with a developer and can be performed immediately after exposure i.e., prior to a separate post exposure bake. Hansen, in [0083], discloses using the patterned resist as a mask to etch the underlying layer (target layer). Hansen teaches the same claimed metal-oxide containing photoresist layer and is subjected to same EUV exposure and is developed with a developer mixture that comprises the same claimed component and is exposed to the same chemical as that recited and will inherently cause the increasing of crosslinking density of the photoresist and improve the dissolution contrast in the same claimed manner in the exposed region (claims 1-2, and 12-14 ). Hansen, in [0111], and [0203]-[0204], discloses the target layer includes SiOx or SnO2 underlying layer and has the same claimed anion as the metal chelator in the developer solvent mixture (claim 3). Hansen, in [0013]-[0014], discloses that the developer is a developer solvent mixture that includes a solvent and additive (metal chelator) and Hansen, in [0219], discloses that the solvent in the developing solvent mixture includes ketones, cyclic ketones, or esters such as PGMEA or γ-butyrolactone (claims 4-5). Hansen, in [0101], and [0216], discloses that the developer mixture includes water and the additive dissolved in the water wherein the additive includes hot ethanol (alcohol as the metal chelator, see [0111]) (claim 6). Hansen, in [0014], discloses that the additive (metal chelator) in the developing solvent mixture ([0013]) includes acid such as R-COOH wherein R is an alkyl or substituted aryl) (claims 7-8). Hansen, in [0111], discloses that the metal in the metal chelator includes transition metals and i.e., cation in the metal chelator includes transition metal cations. Hansen, in [0111], discloses that the metal chelators include acids i.e., cations in the acid includes H⁺ions (claim 9). Hansen, in [0219], discloses that the development mixture includes an organic solvent and additive such as HCl or HBr i.e., the anion of the additive includes Cl⁻ or Br⁻ (claim 10). Hansen, in [0107], discloses that the exposed resist can be subjected to a developing process using a developer and an additive (claimed non-developer) such as Br2 or Cl2 (claim 11). Hansen, in [0109], discloses that the resist that has been developed can be exposed to a chemical (applying a chemical) such as O2 (claim 15). Hansen, in [0107], discloses that the exposed film can be both thermally treated and exposed to a developer organic solvent mixture that includes the chemical such as Br2 or Cl2, and the developer solvent includes other additive (chemical) such as metal chelator (see [0013]) such as transition metal cations (see [0111]), metal chelators such as acid in developer solvent wherein the anions in the acid-containing developer solvent (see [0219]) includes anions such as Cl⁻ or Br⁻ ions (claims 16-18).
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) 19-20, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U. S. Patent Application Publication No. 2023/0266670 (hereinafter referred to as Hansen) in view of U. S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0192861 (hereinafter referred to as Banine).
Hansen, in [0021], [0088], [0124]-[0126], discloses an EUV lithography process performed on a EUV resist-coated substrate wherein the EUV resist film is exposed via a patterned mask to EUV radiation, and the EUV resist is a metal-oxide containing resist and the metal precursor used to form the radiation sensitive film includes linkages between metal such as ⁻O⁻ linkages to form M-O-M structures i.e., metal oxide bonded to metal such as Sn or Si and form the metal-containing resist, and Hansen, in [0179]-[0180], discloses that the metal precursor coated to form the EUV resist film (imaging/PR layer) include networks of metal oxide bonds with other groups (i.e., cluster of metal oxide resist) and the EUV resist film contains metals and metal oxides mixed with organic components (claims 19-20).
The difference between the claims and Hansen is that Hansen does not disclose the generation of the EUV radiation and the guiding of the EUV radiation in the claimed manner.
Banine, in figures 2-3, discloses the generation of the EUV radiation and guiding the EUV radiation generated via one or more optics (illuminator), and the EUV radiation is then incident on the reflective mask (patterning device, MT of the exposure device) which reflects the EUV radiation onto the layer on the wafer (photoresist coated wafer, see [0081]). Banine, in [0007]-[0008], and [0089], discloses that the metal (Sn) droplet generated is at the zone of excitation so as to be irradiated with a laser that excites/irradiates the fuel (Sn droplet) and heats the irradiated droplet to thereby generate an EUV radiation, and Banine, in [0102] discloses that the EUV radiation traverses to the illumination system which directs the beam of radiation to the patterning device ([0087]) such as a reflective mask that produces a patterned beam that is directed to the wafer.
Therefore, it would be obvious to a skilled artisan to modify Hansen by using the EUV source taught by Banine because Hansen, in [0235], discloses that the lithography tool is a EUV photolithography tool with a source of sub-30nm wavelength radiation that is an EUV source, and Banine in [0006]-[0007], discloses using the claimed EUV generator enables the production of radiation that includes the sub-30 nm radiation and Hansen does not prohibit the use of an EUV source and requires an EUV source so as to use EUV radiation for the exposure process.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Daborah Chacko-Davis whose telephone number is (571) 272-1380. The examiner can normally be reached on 9:30AM-6:00PM EST Mon-Fri. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Sally A. Merkling can be reached on (571) 272-6297. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-272-8300. 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.
/DABORAH CHACKO-DAVIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737 June 23, 2026.
Prosecution Insights