DETAILED ACTION
This office action is in response to the amendment filed 6/2/2026.
Currently, claims 1-2, 4-6, 9, 11-16 and 21-28 are pending.
Drawings
The amended drawings filed 6/2/2026 overcome the objections made in the previous office action. However, upon consideration of the amendments made to the claims, it has become apparent that there are additional objections to the drawings. In particular, within the drawings representing the method of manufacture, semiconductor layer 1406 switches from having no shading to being shaded with “+” signs only in the “C” figures (i.e. FIG. 16C, 17C). For instance, compare FIG. 15C and FIG. 16C. In FIG. 16-18, “1406” is shown to have no shading in the “A” and “B” figures, yet is shaded with “+” in FIG. 16C, 17C and 18C. Meanwhile, beginning in FIG. 19, the “+” shading indicates a dielectric material. Thus, the “+” shading in FIG. 16-18 appear to be erroneous.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 21-28 are also rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the enablement requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention.
Claim 21 recites the limitations “isolation structures, disposed on opposite sides of the first source/drain features in the Y- direction … wherein the first bottom dielectric layer is disposed … between the isolation structures in the Y-direction”. Based on the disclosure as originally filed, one of ordinary skill in the art would not be enabled to arrive at such a structure.
The method of manufacture is shown in FIG. 13-28. The step at which the bottom dielectric layer is formed is shown in FIG. 19, which does appear to show the bottom dielectric layer 330 being formed between the isolation structures 316 in the Y-direction (FIG. 19C), and formed in regions that are later on opposite sides of the source/drain features in the Y- direction (FIG. 19A-B, 22A-B). However, the disclosure lacks any mention of how the bottom dielectric could be formed between the isolation structures. More particularly, there is no explanation for how FIG. 19C could result from FIG. 18C. As discussed in para. [0136], semiconductor layer 1406 that is exposed in the trenches 1712, 1714 (see FIG. 17A-B) is selectively removed (see FIG. 18A-B). This creates a space in which the bottom dielectric layer is formed (para. [0137], FIG. 19A-B). However, in the region between the isolation structures, semiconductor layer 1406 is not exposed (FIG. 17C), and thus in this region semiconductor layer 1406 is not selectively etched, but rather remains (FIG. 18C). The presence of the semiconductor layer 1406 between the isolation structures means that there is no space for the bottom dielectric layer to be formed in that region. There is no explanation for how FIG. 19C could possibly result from FIG. 18C, and thus one of ordinary skill would not be enabled to arrive at the claimed structure based on the disclosure.
Claims 22-28 recite the same limitation via dependency.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-2, 4-6, 9, and 11-16 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Independent claims 1 and 11 have been amended to incorporate subject matter previously identified as allowable.
Response to Arguments
The arguments with respect to the prior art rejections have been considered and are persuasive. With respect to the arguments directed towards the previous rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112, these arguments are persuasive in that the amendments address these previous rejections. However, the amendments lead to new rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112, as discussed above.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL M LUKE whose telephone number is (571)270-1569. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm, EST.
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, William Kraig can be reached at (571) 272-8660. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DANIEL LUKE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2896
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