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, claims 1-8 in the reply filed on 12/29/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 9-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention Groups II-III, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 12/29/2025.
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 and 6-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ueda et al. US 5,541,007(Ueda).
Ueda teaches an Al alloy that applies to the claimed material as follows:
Al alloy material
Instant application
Ueda (broad) (abstract)
Ueda (Sample 4 Table 1)
Aluminum (Al)
99-99.8 wt%
Balance
Balance
Copper (Cu)
0.1-0.5 wt%
0.01-3.0 wt%
0.50 wt%
Scandium (Sc)
0.1-0.5 wt%
0.01-1.0 wt%
0.20 wt%
Regarding claims 1 and 3, the Al amount in Sample 4 of Ueda(Table 1) is calculated to be 99.3 wt%. Therefore, the Al alloy in Sample 4 as taught by Ueda anticipates the claimed material having the claimed alloy composition. Additionally, the language “for a metal line in a semiconductor device” merely states the intended use for the claimed material, and does not provide any further limitations that distinguish the claimed material from the Al alloy in Sample 4 of Ueda.
Regarding claim 2, the amount of copper in Sample 4 of Ueda is greater than the amount of scandium as claimed.
Regarding claim 6, the instant claim recites a change rate calculated based on the material grain size before and after a heat treatment. However, this limitation merely quantifies the percentage grain size change, it does not contain further limitations that materially differentiates the claimed Al alloy material from the Al alloy material of Ueda.
Regarding claim 7, the instant claim recites how grain size of the claimed material is measured, which does not provide further limitation that materially distinguishes the claimed Al alloy material from the Al alloy material of Ueda.
Regarding claim 8, the instant claim recites the grain size before the heat treatment, which is not directed to the final Al alloy product, therefore, does not materially distinguishes the claimed Al alloy material from the Al alloy material of Ueda.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 4-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ueda.
The teachings of Ueda are discussed in section 5 above.
Regarding claim 4, the ratio of Cu to Sc calculated based on the broader scope of the Al alloy composition is 1:1 (ratio of [lower limits of 0.01wt% Cu to 0.01 wt% of Sc] to 3:1[higher limits of 3.0wt% Cu to 1.0 wt% of Sc]), which is equivalent to 33-100 parts by weight of Sc per 100 parts by weight of Cu in the Al alloy of Ueda.
The implicit amount of Sc per 100 parts by weight of Cu in the Al alloy composition of Ueda would have encompasses the claimed 50-70 parts by weight of Sc per 100 parts by weight of Cu. Therefore, a prima facie case of obviousness exists. See MPEP 2144.05(I). The selection of claimed amount of Sc per 100 parts by weight of Cu in the Al alloy composition from the amount of Sc per 100 parts by weight of Cu in the Al alloy composition of Ueda would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art since the amount of Sc per 100 parts by weight of Cu in the Al alloy composition of Ueda teach the same utility, absent persuasive evidence that the claimed particular 50-70 parts by weight of Sc per 100 parts by weight of Cu in the Al alloy composition is significant.
Regarding claim 5, the broader scope of Ueda includes an Al alloy composition that encompasses the claimed Al99.5Cu0.3Sc0.2. Therefore, a prima facie case of obviousness exists. See MPEP 2144.05(I). The selection of claimed Al alloy composition from the Al alloy composition of Ueda would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art since the Al alloy composition of Ueda teach the same utility, absent persuasive evidence that the claimed particular Al alloy composition is significant.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LOIS L ZHENG whose telephone number is (571)272-1248. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 8:15-4:45.
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, Keith Hendricks can be reached at 571-272-1401. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
LOIS ZHENG
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1733
/LOIS L ZHENG/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1733