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 .
The Applicant’s Response to Election/Restriction filed 27 March 2026 corresponding to the Requirement for Restriction/Election by the Examiner mailed 06 February 2026 has been received and considered. Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 1 – 10 in the reply is acknowledged.
The IDS filed 08 February 2026 has been received and considered.
Claims 1 – 20 are pending.
Claims 1 – 10 have been elected.
Claims 11 – 20 are withdrawn by virtue of Non-election.
Claims 4 – 8 have been objected to.
Claims 1 – 3 and 9 – 10, all of the remaining claims in the application, have been rejected.
Claim Interpretation
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
(f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
This application includes one or more claim limitations that do not use the word “means,” but are nonetheless being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, because the claim limitation(s) uses a generic placeholder that is coupled with functional language without reciting sufficient structure to perform the recited function and the generic placeholder is not preceded by a structural modifier.
Such claim limitation(s) is/are: “controller” in claim 1. While in some contexts a controller might be a specific piece of hardware, here it is used generically and encompasses at least a CPU/GPU combination (see claim 9) and is understood to also include the necessary software stored in memory to perform the described functions.
Because this/these claim limitation(s) is/are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, it/they is/are being interpreted to cover the corresponding structure described in the specification as performing the claimed function, and equivalents thereof.
If applicant does not intend to have this/these limitation(s) interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, applicant may: (1) amend the claim limitation(s) to avoid it/them being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph (e.g., by reciting sufficient structure to perform the claimed function); or (2) present a sufficient showing that the claim limitation(s) recite(s) sufficient structure to perform the claimed function so as to avoid it/them being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph.
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.
Claims 1 – 3 and 9 – 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Publication No. 2023/0074302 A1 to CHO et al. (hereinafter CHO) in view of US Publication No. 2024/0371600 A1 to Breuer et al. (hereinafter Breuer).
Claim 1
Regarding claim 1, an independent device claim, CHO teaches a semiconductor manufacturing device comprising: an electron beam source configured to emit an electron beam (Abstract).
Although CHO teaches wherein the stage is configured to support an object (Referring to FIGS. 12A to 12C, an object 403 may be seated on a stage 402.”, Paragraph [0080]), CHO does not explicitly teach a plurality of condenser lenses disposed between a stage and the electron beam source; and
an objective lens disposed between the plurality of condenser lenses and the stage.
However, Breuer teaches a plurality of condenser lenses disposed between a stage and the electron beam source (Figure 1, #105, #106, and #108; "In some embodiments, a condenser lens system 106 (including one or more condenser lenses) may be arranged downstream of the charged particle source 105, particularly for collimating the charged particle beam 11 propagating toward the focusing lens 120. In some embodiments, the focusing lens 120 is an objective lens configured to focus the charged particle beam 11 on the sample 10, particularly a magnetic objective lens, an electrostatic objective lens, or a combined magnetic-electrostatic objective lens.", Paragraph [0033]; "The charged particle beam imaging device 100 further includes a sample stage 108 and a focusing lens 120, particularly an objective lens, for focusing the charged particle 20) beam 11 toward the sample 10 that is placed on the sample stage 108 in a sample plane (p.sub.S). The sample plane (p.sub.S) may be a plane in which the sample 10 to be inspected can be placed that extends substantially perpendicular to the optical axis A. For taking an image, the charged particle beam is focused toward the sample plane, particularly toward an upper surface of the sample 10 that is to be inspected.", Paragraph [0027]);
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an objective lens disposed between the plurality of condenser lenses and the stage (Refer to figure 1, #120; Rejected as applied directly above), where the objective lens (120) is between the condenser lenses (106) and the stage (108).;
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of CHO to incorporate objective disposed between condenser lenses and a stage in a semiconductor device, as disclosed by Breuer. The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been using a multiple condenser lens system provides highly precise control over the illumination path and further allows for tunable beam convergence, maximized photon/electron efficiency, and the reduction of spherical aberrations.
Cho, in view of Breuer, further teaches an aperture disposed between the plurality of condenser lenses (Figure 22, with the aperture system #1030 being between the lens unit 1020; "The semiconductor manufacturing device 1000 may include an adjustment unit 1050 adjusting positions of apertures included in the aperture system 1030, a measurement unit 1060 measuring intensity of the electron beam EB passing through the aperture system 1030, a control unit 1070, and the like. As an example, the control unit 1070 may adjust an alignment state of the apertures, included in the aperture system 1030, or current, flowing to a coil present in the lens unit 1020, to adjust a shape and a distribution of an electron beam irradiated to the substrate 1002.", Paragraphs [0129 - 0130]).
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a controller configured to acquire a plurality of original images according to a working distance between the objective lens and the object ("As an example, the control unit 40 may obtain a plurality of original images of the object 60 while adjusting the working distance between the objective lens 33 and the object 60. Some of the plurality of original images, obtained while adjusting the working distance, may be out-of-focus images.", Paragraph [0033]),
acquire a pattern image from the plurality of original images, wherein the pattern image exhibits object features corresponding to structures from the object ("The control unit 40 may obtains a pattern image, in which structures included in the object 60 appear, and a plurality of kernel images, in which a shape and a distribution of an electron beam in the object 60 appear in the object 60, from the plurality of original images and may automatically optimize or improve the focus and the astigmatism of the lens unit 30 based on feature values extracted from the images.", Paragraph [0033]; "In each of the first original image 501 and the seventh to ninth original images 507 to 509, structures included in a target area of an object may hardly be displayed. However, since the plurality of original images 501 to 509 are obtained by irradiating an electron beam to the same structures, they may be obtained through a convolution operation of a pattern image, in which structures are displayed, and a plurality of kernel images. For example, the first to ninth original images 501 to 509 may be obtained by applying each of the first to ninth kernel images, different from each other, to a single pattern image.", Paragraph [0087])),
acquire a plurality of kernel images indicating distribution of the electron beam on the object ("The control unit 40 may obtains a pattern image, in which structures included in the object 60 appear, and a plurality of kernel images, in which a shape and a distribution of an electron beam in the object 60 appear in the object 60, from the plurality of original images and may automatically optimize or improve the focus and the astigmatism of the lens unit 30 based on feature values extracted from the images.", Paragraph [0033]; "Accordingly, reversely, a single pattern image and a plurality of kernel images may be obtained by applying a deconvolution operation to each of the plurality of original images 501 to 509. The pattern image may be an image in which structures formed in the target area of the object are displayed, and the plurality of kernel images may be images representing a distribution of an electron beam irradiated to the target area of the object. For example, the distribution of the electron beam in each of the plurality of kernel images may be expressed in the form of a point spread function. Hereinafter, this is described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 14A to 141.", Paragraph [0088]),
acquire a plurality of position vectors indicating a relative position of the object features in the plurality of kernel images ("The control unit 1070 may extract feature values, which may express a point spread function corresponding to the shape of the electron beam EB irradiated to the substrate 1002, from the plurality of kernel images. As an example, the feature values may include a major axis and a minor axis of the point spread function, and an angle of inclination. The control unit 1070 may map the feature values to a two-dimensional (2D) plane, defined using the feature values, and may generate a representative vector from vectors, connecting the feature values to each other, to obtain compensation data for adjusting astigmatism. At the same time, the control unit 1070 may determine a working distance of the lens unit 1020 which may accurately irradiate the electron beam EB to a desired position of the substrate 1002. Accordingly, the control unit 1070 may automatically adjust the working distance of the lens unit 1020 to match a focal length and may compensate for astigmatism.", Paragraph [0135]), and
adjust a position of the aperture based on a motion vector indicating movement of the plurality of position vectors according to the working distance (Rejected as applied directly above; Paragraph [0037; 0128 - 0134]).
Claim 2
Regarding claim 2, dependent on claim 1, CHO, in view of Breuer, teaches the invention as claim in claim 1.
CHO further teaches wherein the plurality of original images comprise: at least one overfocused image captured under an overfocused condition in which the working distance is longer than a focal distance of the objective lens (When the working distance of the objective lens is longer than the focal length, the electron beam may be irradiated to the target area of the object in an over-focused condition. In addition, when the working distance of the objective lens is shorter than the focal length, the electron beam may be irradiated to the target area of the object under an under-focused condition. Accordingly, the plurality of original images obtained in operation S10 while adjusting the working distance may include at least one original image obtained under the over-focused condition and at least one original image obtained under the under-focused condition.), and
at least one underfocused image captured under an underfocused condition in which the working distance is shorter than the focal distance of the objective lens (Rejected as applied directly above).
Claim 3
Regarding claim 3, dependent on claim 1, CHO, in view of Breuer, teaches the invention as claim in claim 1.
CHO further teaches wherein each original image of the plurality of original images corresponds to a convolution between images having been moved by application of each position vector of the plurality of position vectors to the pattern image and each kernel image of the plurality of kernel images ("Accordingly, in an example embodiment, a plurality of vectors may be generated using a plurality of feature values as illustrated in FIG. 17. Referring to FIG. 17, the vectors may be vectors connected from an i-th feature value to a j-th feature value, and i may be smaller than j. Therefore, N feature values may be connected to generate N*(N-1)/2 vectors. For example, vectors connected from a first feature value to second to ninth feature values may be generated, and vectors connected from the second feature value to third to ninth feature values may be generated. The generated vectors may be aligned using an origin of the 2D plane as a starting point, and a representative vector VR may be generated by normalizing the aligned vectors. A representative vector VR may be a median vector, and a compensation direction for adjusting astigmatism may be determined as a direction of the representative vector VR.", Paragraph [0109]; "As an example, each of the plurality of original images may correspond to convolution of a pattern image, in which structures present in an object appear, and a plurality of kernel images, respectively corresponding to shapes of an electron beams irradiated to the object according to the working distance.", Paragraph [0063]), and
wherein the controller is configured to apply a deconvolutional operation to each original image of the plurality of original images ("Accordingly, the control unit may apply a deconvolution operation to the plurality of original images to obtain a first equation, corresponding to a pattern image, and a second equation corresponding to a distribution of an electron beam shapes appearing in each of the plurality of kernel images", Paragraph [0063]).
Claim 9
Regarding claim 9, dependent on claim 1, CHO, in view of Breuer, teaches the invention as claim in claim 1.
CHO further teaches wherein the controller comprises a central processing unit (CPU) and a graphics processing unit (GPU) ("The control unit may include a graphics processing unit (GPU) and a central processing unit (CPU). The control unit may perform an optimization or improvement operation on the GPU specific to image processing, rather than the CPU, to reduce time required for the optimization or improvement operation.", Paragraph [0065]),
wherein the graphics processing unit is configured to execute an operation of acquiring the pattern image, the plurality of kernel images (Rejected as applied to claim 1), and
the plurality of position vectors from the plurality of original images (Rejected as applied to claim 1).
Claim 10
Regarding claim 10, dependent on claim 1, CHO, in view of Breuer, teaches the invention as claim in claim 1.
CHO further teaches herein the objective lens further comprises a stigmator configured to adjust astigmatism ("Referring to FIG. 2, a semiconductor production apparatus 100 may include a control unit 110, an objective lens 120, and the like, and the objective lens 120 may include a plurality of scanning coils 121, an astigmatism adjuster 123, an aperture 125, and the like. The plurality of scanning coils 121 may deflect the electron beam to a single point of the objective lens 120. The astigmatism adjuster 123 may include a plurality of stigmators and may adjust current, flowing to the stigmators, to adjust the astigmatism of the electron beam passing through the objective lens 120…Accordingly, the astigmatism of the objective lens 120 may be adjusted.", Paragraphs [0036]),
wherein the controller is configured to adjust the stigmator based on the plurality of kernel images (Figures 19 and 20; Paragraphs [0112 - 0120]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-8 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 Ronde Miller whose telephone number is (703) 756-5686 The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00-4:00.
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/RONDE LEE MILLER/Examiner, Art Unit 2663
/GREGORY A MORSE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2698
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