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 .
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 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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election of claim(s) 9-20 without traverse in the reply filed on 5/4/2026 is acknowledged. Claim(s) 1-8 are canceled. New claim(s) 21-28 are added.
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.
Claim 15-20 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 15, the limitation “forming a non-volatile memory structure the first portion of the interconnect structure” in line 3 creates ambiguity because it is not clear what is being claimed. It appears “forming a non-volatile memory structure the first portion of the interconnect structure” should be “forming a non-volatile memory structure over the first portion of the interconnect structure”.
Regarding claim 16-20, these claims are rejected since they inherit the indefiniteness of the claim from which they depend.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9-14 and 21-28 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claim 9 is allowable primarily because the prior arts of record, singly or in combination, neither anticipates nor render obvious the following limitations when taken in combination with all other limitations:
“…forming a ferroelectric layer of the non-volatile memory structure above the bottom gate electrode; forming a metal-oxide channel layer of the non-volatile memory structure above the ferroelectric layer; forming a dielectric layer above the metal-oxide channel layer; forming a source/drain electrode of the non-volatile memory structure at least one of adjacent to or above the metal-oxide channel layer; forming a hydrogen absorption layer on the source/drain electrode; forming a hydrogen blocking layer on the hydrogen absorption layer; and forming a conductive structure on the hydrogen blocking layer”.
The most relevant prior art Heo et al. (US publication 2023/0068904 A1), (specifically fig. 1 and related text) and Zhu et al. (US publication 2020/0194557 A1), (specifically fig. 1b and related text), disclose some limitations of the claimed invention (Heo et al. teaches …a field effect transistor comprising: a ferroelectric material (FE1/FE2, [0062]); a channel material (CH, [0054]) on the ferroelectric material, the channel material comprising a transition metal and a chalcogen ([0022 and 0097]); and a source (SR, fig. 1) and a drain (DR) coupled to the channel material (fig. 1), the source and drain comprising a conductive material ([0057])… and Zhu et al. teaches … a field effect transistor comprising: a ferroelectric material (217, [0025]); a channel material (220, [0025]) on the ferroelectric material; and a source (222, [0025]) and a drain (224) coupled to the channel material (fig. 1b), the source and drain comprising a conductive material ([0037]) …) but do not disclose nor render obvious independent claim(s) 9 as a whole and thus independent claim(s) 9 are deemed patentable (some limitations may be found but not in combination with proper motivation). The depended claims are allowed for their dependency to claim 9.
Claim 21 is allowable primarily because the prior arts of record, singly or in combination, neither anticipates nor render obvious the following limitations when taken in combination with all other limitations:
“…wherein the non-volatile memory structure comprises a metal-oxide channel layer; forming a first recess in the first portion of the dielectric layer, wherein the first recess exposes a portion of the metal-oxide channel layer; depositing conductive material in the first recess to form a source/drain electrode, wherein the source/drain electrode contacts the portion of the metal-oxide channel layer; depositing a second portion of the dielectric layer over the source/drain electrode; forming a second recess in the second portion of the dielectric layer, wherein the second recess exposes a portion of the source/drain electrode; forming a hydrogen barrier layer in the second recess on the portion of the source/drain electrode; and forming a conductive structure in the second recess on the hydrogen barrier layer”.
The Prior Arts of record and considered pertinent to the applicant's disclosure and to the examiner’s knowledge does not teach or render obvious, at least to the skilled artisan, the instant invention regarding: the limitations of claim 21 in its entirety (some limitations may be found (as explained above) but not in combination with proper motivation). Hence, claim 21 is allowable. The depended claims are allowed for their dependency to claim 21.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Mohammed R Alam whose telephone number is 469-295-9205 and can normally be reached between 8:00am-6:00pm (M-F) or by e-mail via Mohammed.Alam1@uspto.gov.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jacob Choi can be reached on 469-295-9060. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MOHAMMED R ALAM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2897
Prosecution Insights