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
Claims 14-22 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Group II, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 16 June 2026.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “a support layer having a support layer upper surface that includes a recess therein”, “an electrode in the recess”, as described in claim 1, and “a trench within the substrate exposing a lower surface of the electrode”, as described in claim 5, and “wherein a cross-sectional thickness of the second electrode cavity inside the resonator area is less than a cross-sectional thickness of the second electrode outside the resonator area”, as described in claim 7, must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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 § 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.
Claim(s) 2-4 and 9-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bradley (PG Pub 20150381144).
Considering claim 2, Bradley (Figures 1 + 3A) teaches an RF filter circuit, comprising: a plurality of acoustic resonators (105 + paragraph 0004) arranged in the RF filter circuit, at least one of the plurality of acoustic resonators including: a support layer (305 + paragraph 0032) having a support layer upper surface that includes a recess (340 + paragraph 0032) therein; an electrode (315 + paragraph 0033) in the recess, the electrode including an electrode upper surface that is aligned to the support layer upper surface at an edge of the recess (paragraph 0033); and a piezoelectric film (overlying the support layer upper surface and the electrode upper surface, the piezoelectric film (320 + paragraph 0033) including a piezoelectric film lower surface conforming to the support layer upper surface and to the electrode upper surface at the edge of the recess (paragraphs 0032-0033).
Considering claim 3, Bradley (Figures 1 + 3A) teaches a reflector structure within the support layer beneath a lower surface of the electrode (paragraph 0032).
Considering claim 4, Bradley (Figures 1 + 3A) teaches a cavity (340 + paragraph 0032) within the support layer exposing a lower surface of the electrode.
Considering claim 9, Bradley (Figure 3A) teaches wherein the piezoelectric film includes Sc (paragraph 0037).
Considering claim 10, Bradley (Figure 3A) teaches wherein the electrode upper surface and the support layer upper surface are co-planar (see Figure 3A).
Considering claim 11, Bradley (Figure 3A) teaches wherein the electrode upper surface is aligned to the support layer upper surface at opposing edges of the recess (see Figure 3A).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 5-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bradley (PG Pub 20150381144) and in view of Kim (PG Pub 20180054176).
Considering claim 5, Bradley teaches the RF filter circuit wherein the support layer comprises a substrate, the RF filter circuit further comprising as described above.
However, Bradley does not teach a trench with the substrate exposing a lower surface of the electrode.
Kim (Figure 1A) teaches a trench (113 + paragraph 0043) within the substrate exposing a lower surface of the electrode.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to include a trench within the substrate exposing a lower surface of the electrode into Bradley’s device for the benefit of techniques for improving methods of manufacturing and structures for acoustic resonators.
Considering claim 6, Kim (Figure 29B) teaches wherein the electrode comprises a first electrode, the RF filter circuit further comprising: a second electrode (2910 + paragraph 0093) overlying an upper surface of the piezoelectric film (1621 + paragraph 0088) opposite the first electrode, wherein a resonator area of the piezoelectric is defined by an overlap of the second electrode and the first electrode projected onto the piezoelectric film (paragraphs 0091-0093), a second electrode cavity (2912 + paragraph 0093) included in an upper surface of the second electrode, wherein the second electrode cavity is located within the resonator area.
Considering claim 7, Kim (Figure 29B) teaches a cross-sectional thickness of the second electrode cavity inside the resonator area is less than a cross-sectional thickness of the second electrode outside the resonator area (limitation is met since the same structure is taught).
Considering claim 8, Kim (Figure 24B) teaches an electrode contact via (2410 + paragraph 0088) passing completely through the piezoelectric film to expose the electrode upper surface and a metal in the electrode contact via connecting to the electrode.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRYAN P GORDON whose telephone number is (571)272-5394. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m..
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Dedei K Hammond can be reached at 571-270-7938. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRYAN P GORDON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
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