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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 11/28/2023. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
(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.
Claim(s) 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Sugioka et al. US 2021/0391279.
Re claim 1, Sugioka teaches an apparatus (fig 15A), comprising:
an insulating structure (26, fig15A, [41]) in a scribe region (2, fig15A, [40]);
a plurality of metal layers (44, 43 in region 2, fig15A and 15B, [37]) , the metal layers including a top metal layer (44 in region 2, fig15A, [35]) in the insulating structure (26, fig15A, [41]) in the scribe region (2, fig15A, [40]);
a groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]) on the insulating structure (26, fig15A, [41]) in the scribe region (2, fig15A, [40]); and
an air gap (space between 6a of 26 in portion A, fig15A) between the top metal layer (44 in region 2, fig15A, [37]) and the groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]) in the scribe region (2, fig15A, [40]).
Re claim 2, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a bottom portion of the air gap (top surface of 6b in region A, fig15A) is higher than an upper surface of the top metal layer (top surface of 44 in region 2, fig15A, [37]).
Re claim 3, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air gap (space between 6a in portion A, fig15A, [52, 40]) is exposed at the groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]).
Re claim 4, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air gap (space between 6a in portion A, fig15A, [52, 40]) includes a top portion exposed at a bottom portion of the groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]).
Re claim 5, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]) penetrates partway the insulating structure (26, fig15A, [41]).
Re claim 6, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the top metal layer includes a plurality of metal wirings in the scribe region (44 in region 2, fig15A and 15B, [37]), and the air gap (space between 6a in portion A, fig3 and 15A) is above an area (region A, fig3) between neighboring metal wirings (area between 44 in region A of fig15A and 44 in region 2 of 15B overlap with A in fig3) among the plurality of metal wirings .
Re claim 7, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air gap includes a plurality of air gaps arranged next to each other (region A, fig3), each of the plurality of air gaps is between the top metal layer and the groove (fig15A), and a bottom portion of each of the plurality of air gaps (top surface of 6b in region A, fig15A, [41]) is higher than an upper surface of the top metal layer (4 in region 2, fig15A, [35]).
Re claim 8, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the top metal layer includes a plurality of metal wirings in the scribe region (44 in region 2, fig15A and 15B, [37]), the plurality of metal wirings are arranged next to each other (fig3, 15A and 15B), and each of the plurality of air gaps is above an area between neighboring metal wirings among the plurality of metal wirings (A between 44 in region 2, fig3, 15A and 15B).
Re claim 9, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of insulating layers (20, 22, 24, and 16 in region 3, fig5A and 15A, [43]) under the insulating structure (26, fig5A, [41]); a plurality of metal wirings (40, 42 in region 3, fig5B and 15A, [38]) in the respective insulating layers; and a plurality of vias (41 in region 3, fig5B and 15A, [38]) configured to electrically couple the metal wirings with one another, wherein the metal wirings and the vias are aligned with one another in a vertical direction (40, 41, 42 aligned in region 3, fig15A), and both the metal wirings and the vias are on one side or both sides of a scribe cut line in a horizontal direction in the scribe region (fig15A).
Re claim 10, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the metal wirings and the vias form a pair of groups of the metal wirings and the vias (40, 41, 42 aligned in region 3, fig15A), and the pair of groups of the metal wirings and the vias are on the respective sides of the scribe cut line (fig15A).
Re claim 11, Sugioka teaches an apparatus (fig15A), comprising:
an insulating structure in a scribe region (26 in region 2, fig15A, [41]);
a plurality of metal layers (44, 43 in region 2, fig15A and 15B, [37]), the metal layers including a top metal layer (44 in region 2, fig15A, [35]) in the insulating structure in the scribe region;
a groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]) on the insulating structure in the scribe region; and
an air gap (space between 6a of 26 in portion A, fig15A, [92]) between the top metal layer (44 in region 2, fig15A, [35]) and the groove in the scribe region (space between 55a with portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]), the air gap including a top portion exposed at a bottom portion of the groove (top surface of gap between 6a exposed by groove between 55a, fig15A) and a bottom portion above an upper surface of the top metal layer (bottom surface of gap between 6a of 26 above top surface of 44, fig15A).
Re claim 12, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the scribe region extends in a first direction (2 extends along F, fig3 and 15A), the groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]) extends along the scribe region in the first direction and penetrates partway the insulating structure in a second direction (vertical direction, fig15A) perpendicular to the first direction, the air gap (space between 6a in portion A, fig15A, [52, 40]) extends along the scribe region in the first direction and reaches the groove in the second direction in the insulating structure.
Re claim 13, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the air gap is provided in the scribe region corresponding to a position where dicing is to be performed (space between 6a of 26 in portion A, fig15A, [92]).
Re claim 14, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the groove penetrates partway the insulating structure (space between 55a with portion C-A-C into 26, fig15A, [52, 40]).
Re claim 15, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the top metal layer includes a plurality of metal wirings in the scribe region (44 in region 2, fig15A and 15B, [37]), and the air gap (space between 6a in portion A, fig3 and 15A) is above an area (region A, fig3) between neighboring metal wirings among the plurality of metal wirings (44 in region 2, fig3).
Re claim 16, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the air gap includes a plurality of air gaps arranged next to each other (space between 6a in portion A, fig3 and 15A), and each of the plurality of air gaps includes the top portion exposed at the bottom portion of the groove and the bottom portion above the upper surface of the top metal layer (space between 6a under space between 55 and above 44 in region 2, fig15).
Re claim 17, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising: a plurality of insulating layers (20, 22, 24, and 16 in region 3, fig5A and 15A, [43]) under the insulating structure (26, fig5A, [41]); a plurality of metal wirings (40, 42 in region 3, fig5B and 15A, [38]) in the respective insulating layers; and a plurality of vias (41 in region 3, fig5B and 15A, [38]) configured to electrically couple the metal wirings with one another, wherein the metal wirings and the vias are aligned with one another in a vertical direction (40, 41, 42 aligned in region 3, fig15A), and both the metal wirings and the vias are on one side or both sides of a scribe cut line in a horizontal direction in the scribe region (fig15A).
Re claim 18, Sugioka teaches an apparatus (fig15A), comprising:
an insulating structure in a scribe region (26 in region 2, fig15A, [41]);
a plurality of insulating layers (20, 22, 24, and 16, fig5A and 15A, [43]) under the insulating structure (26, fig5A, [41]);
a plurality of metal layers (39, fig5B and 15A, [35]) including metal wirings (44, 42, 40 in region 3, fig15A) in the respective insulating layers in the scribe region, the metal layers including a top metal layer (44, fig15A, [38]) in the insulating structure in the scribe region;
a plurality of vias (43, 41, fig15A, [38]) configured to electrically couple the metal wirings with one another;
a groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]) on the insulating structure in the scribe region; and
an air gap (space between 6a of 26 in portion A, fig15A, [92]) between the top metal layer (44, fig15A, [38]) and the groove (space between 55a in portion C-A-C, fig15A, [52, 40]) in the insulating structure in the scribe region, the air gap including a bottom portion higher than an upper surface of the top metal layer (bottom surface of space between 6a located above 44, fig15A).
Re claim 19, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the metal wirings (44, 42, 40 in region 3, fig15A) and the vias (43, 41, fig15A, [38]) are aligned with one another in the vertical direction (44, 43, 42 and 41 aligned, fig15B) and are on one side or both sides of a scribe cut line in a horizontal direction in the scribe region (fig15A).
Re claim 20, Sugioka teaches the apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the top metal layer includes one or more metal wirings arranged neighboring to each other in the horizontal direction (44, fig15A and 15B), the air gap (space between 6a of 26 in portion A, fig3, 15A, [92]) is above an area between the neighboring metal wirings (area between 44 in region A of fig15A and 44 in region 2 of 15B overlap with A in fig3), and the air gap is exposed at the groove (fig15A).
Conclusion
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/XIAOMING LIU/Examiner, Art Unit 2812
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