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 group I, claims 1-20 in the reply filed on 2/4/26 is acknowledged. Since the election is made without traverse, the restriction is deemed as proper and therefore made FINAL. Claims 21-22 are withdrawn from consideration.
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, 7-10, 14, 18-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Azumo US 2020/0006057.
Per claims 1, 20, Azumo teaches a semiconductor device manufacturing method and substrate processing method comprising a step of forming a SAM 8 (first adsorption inhibiting layer) [0024] by supplying a thiol-based compound (first precursor) of formula R-SH to a substrate (1) [0048] in which a Si film 2 (first base) is exposed in a surface of a first substrate region 20 and a C film 3, an SiN film 4, and an SiO2 film 5 (second base) [0049] are exposed in a surface of a second substrate region 30 to cause the molecules constituting the thiol-based compound to be adsorbed to a surface of the Si film 2 (Fig. 4b), forming an intermediate film 6 (adsorption promotion layer) having an OH to which the first SAM is adsorbed by supplying a TMA gas and water gas (reactants) to a substrate [0034], a step of forming the a SAM (second adsorption inhibiting layer) by supplying a silane compound (second precursor) with a different molecular structure from the thiol based compound, and forming a target film 40 such as TiN film on a surface of the Si film by supplying a TDMAT gas and an ammonia gas (film forming substance) [0037].
Per claim 7, Azumo teaches forming an Al2O3 film as the intermediate film [0034].
Per claim 8, Azumo teaches depositing the film constituting the intermediate film by means of ALD [0037].
Per claim 9, Azumo teaches H-2O gas as an oxidizing agent [0034].
Per claim 10, Azumo teaches the thickness of the Al2O3 to be about 1 nm, which falls within the claimed range [0034].
Per claim 14, Azumo teaches removal of the intermediate film by etching [0040].
Per claim 18, Azumo teaches the first substrate region may be an oxide-based film and the second substrate region may be an Si film or a metal based film [0039].
Per claim 19, Azumo teaches a silicon oxide film [0030] and a silicon film [0031]-[0034].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-6, 11-13, 15-17 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: No prior art of record teaches all the claimed limitations of claims 2-6, 11-13, or 15-17, including disabling the effect of the firs adsorption layer, detaching the second adsorption inhibiting layer when the first adsorption inhibition effect due to the first adsorption layer is weaker than the effect due to the second adsorption effect, or decreasing the number of adsorption sites, or modifying the film as claimed, in conjunction with the remaining and intervening claim limitations. There would have been no apparent reason or motivation to have modified the prior art to arrive at the claimed invention.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATHAN T. LEONG whose telephone number is (571)270-5352. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10:00-6:00pm.
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/NATHAN T LEONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1718
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