DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-20 are pending, of which claims 1-13 are withdrawn.
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
Claims 1-13 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 7/30/26.
The traversal is on the ground(s) that there would not be a search burden to search the nonelected invention. This is not found persuasive because a search burden can be shown due to separate classification of the claims, as described in the restriction requirement.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
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 (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 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 14-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 20090283499 (“Mayer”).
Regarding claim 14, Mayer teaches a composition comprising cobalt (see e.g. paragraph [0042]). The composition contains a first phase that can be a boron doped cobalt phase (see e.g. paragraph [0127]). The composition also includes a cobalt nitride phase, generated after the boron doped cobalt phase (see e.g. paragraph [0141]).
Regarding claim 15, Mayer teaches that the boron makes up between 1-8 atomic % of the boron doped cobalt, which is entirely within the claimed range (see e.g. paragraph [0097]).
Regarding claim 16, Mayer teaches that the nitrogen makes up between 1-20 atomic % of the cobalt nitride phase, the majority of which is within the claimed range (see e.g. paragraph [0143]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 17-20 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Claims 17-20 each recite a catalyst including the composition of claim 14. In contrast, Mayer teaches that the composition is a capping layer for application after etching a metal substrate (see e.g. Abstract). There is no teaching or suggestion in Mayer that the composition can be used as a catalyst, nor is there any indication that the composition as described in Mayer could operate as a catalyst.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERIC S SHERMAN whose telephone number is (703)756-4784. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:30-5:00 ET.
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/E.S.S./Examiner, Art Unit 1736
/ANTHONY J ZIMMER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1736
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