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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of invention Group I, Species II (FIG. 2) and Subspecies IIB (FIG. 9) in the reply filed on 12/17/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 7-8 and 10-15 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention and species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 12/17/2025.
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.
Claims 4-6 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.
Claim 4 reciting “a second transition layer” renders the claim indefinite. There is no previous recitation to “a first transition layer”. It is unclear if the recitation to “a second transition layer” implies the presence of “a first transition layer”.
Other claims are rejected for depending on a rejected claim.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-6 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Drago et al. US 2020/0235264 A1 (Drago).
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In re claim 1, Drago discloses (e.g. FIGs. 7A-7B) a light emitting device 10, comprising:
a first substrate 8 (¶ 80);
a light emitting structure layer 6,7 (¶ 80), located on the first substrate 80; and
an insertion layer 4, located on the light emitting structure layer 6,7, wherein, a surface (bottom), away from the light emitting structure layer 6,7, of the insertion layer 4 is a roughened surface, and the insertion layer 4 has a protective effect on the light emitting structure layer 6,7 (the presence of layer 4 provides physical protection for layer 6,7 during removal of growth substrate 1, ¶ 81).
In re claim 2, Drago discloses (e.g. FIGs. 7A-7B) wherein an orthographic projection, on the first substrate 8, of the insertion layer 4 at least partially covers an orthographic projection, on the first substrate 8, of the light emitting structure layer 6,7.
In re claim 3, Drago discloses (e.g. FIGs. 7A & 8B) wherein a material of the insertion layer 4 comprises at least one of AlN or AlGaN (¶ 76, 85).
In re claim 4, as best understood, Drago discloses (e.g. FIGs. 7A-7B) further comprising: “a second transition layer” 5 (¶ 78), located between the light emitting structure layer 6,7 and the insertion layer 4, wherein an orthographic projection, on the first substrate 8, of the second transition layer 5 at least partially covers the orthographic projection, on the first substrate 8, of the light emitting structure layer 6,7.
In re claim 5, Drago discloses (e.g. FIGs. 7A-7B) wherein a material of the second transition layer 5 is at least one of GaN, AlGaN or AlInGaN (GaN, ¶ 78).
In re claim 6, Drago discloses (e.g. FIGs. 7A-7B) wherein a lattice constant of the second transition layer 5 (e.g. GaN, ¶ 78) is between a lattice constant of the insertion layer 4 (AlGaN, ¶ 76) and a lattice constant of the light emitting structure layer 6,7 (e.g. InGaN, ¶ 79).
In re claim 9, Drago disclose (e.g. FIGs. 7A-7B) wherein along a direction from the first substrate 8 to the insertion layer 4, a size range of the insertion layer 4 is greater than 0 nm, and less than or equal to 200 nm (40 nm thickness, ¶ 76).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YU CHEN whose telephone number is (571)270-7881. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday: 9AM-5PM ET.
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/YU CHEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2896
YU CHEN
Examiner
Art Unit 2896