DETAILED ACTION
This action is responsive to the application No. 18/430,868 filed on February 02, 2024.
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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election without traverse of the Group II invention in the reply filed on 05/28/2026 is acknowledged. The Applicants indicated that claims 1-7 and 18-20 read on the elected invention. Accordingly, pending in this Office action are claims 1-7, 18-20 and newly added claims 21-320.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
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.
Claims 1-7 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.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “a second cavity length” twice (in line 24 and line 26). It is unclear whether the second recited “a second cavity length” was intended to relate back to “a second cavity length” (line 24) or to set forth an additional second cavity length.
Claim 30 recites the limitation “the at least one resonator VIA”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
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.
Claims 23 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yang (US 2019/0304929).
Regarding Claim 23, Yang (see, e.g., Fig. 12, and Annotated Fig. 12), teaches a method of fabricating a semiconductor device, comprising:
forming a plurality of resonator cavity wall metal components 2451/2452 in a first dielectric component 209, each of the plurality of resonator cavity wall metal components 2451/2452 associated with a distinct resonator cavity formed to extend into the first dielectric component 209, and each of the resonator cavities formed to have a different cavity length L1/L2 extending into the first dielectric component 209 (see, e.g., par. 0034);
forming a second dielectric component 213 on the first dielectric component 209 (see, e.g., par. 0034);
forming a planer capping metal layer CL on the second dielectric component 213 (see, e.g., par. 0034); and
forming at least one capping metal VIA 249 extending through the second dielectric component 213 to the plurality of resonator cavity wall metal components 2451/2452 (see, e.g., par. 0034).
Regarding Claim 30, Yang teaches all aspects of claim 23. Yang (see, e.g., Fig. 12, and Annotated Fig. 12), teaches forming a glue layer 247 between the at least one resonator via and at least one layer of the first dielectric component 209 (see, e.g., par. 0034).
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Allowable subject matter
Claims 18-22 are allowed.
Claims 24-29 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Nelson Garces whose telephone number is (571) 272-8249. The examiner can normally be reached on Mon-Fri 9:00 AM-5:30 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Wael Fahmy can be reached on (571) 272-1705.
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/Nelson Garces/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2814
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