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 .
The Amendment filed on 10/28/2025 has been received and entered.
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.
Claims 7-14 and 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kim et al. (US 2016/0064056, hereinafter “Kim”).
Regarding claims 7 and 18, Kim (Fig. 16) shows a method of driving a semiconductor memory device, the method comprising:
applying a driving voltage (VPP) to a selected word line (WL2) among a plurality of word lines;
applying an off voltage to remaining non-selected word lines (Abstract, lines 8-10 and WL1 and WL3); and
applying a victim voltage (VBB21), which is different from the off voltage, to a word line adjacent to the selected word line among the non-selected word lines during a falling section where a voltage of the selected word line is transited from the driving voltage to the off voltage (from VPP to VSS),
wherein a voltage level of the victim voltage is lower than a voltage level of the off voltage.
Regarding claim 8, Kim (Fig. 16) shows the method of claim 7, wherein the driving voltage comprises a voltage having a logic high level (VPP), and the off voltage comprises a ground voltage (VSS and Abstract, lines 10-11).
Regarding claim 9, Kim (Fig. 16) shows the method of claim 7, wherein the selected word line comprises an nth word line among the word lines, and the victim word line comprises at least one of a (n±1)th word lines to a (n±a)th word line, where a is a natural number, among the word lines.
Regarding claim 11, Kim (Fig. 16) shows a method of driving a semiconductor memory device, the method comprising:
setting a victim word line (Wl1 or WL3) from address information of an aggressor word line (the WL1 and WL3 are identified as adjacent word lines by the address of WL2); and
applying a victim voltage (negative volage VBB21), which is lower than different from an off voltage (Abstract, lines 8-11, ground voltage), to the victim word line during a falling section of the aggressor word line (t22, word line WL2 from VPP to VSS).
Regarding claim 12, Kim discloses the method of claim 11, wherein the address information of the aggressor word line comprises address information of a selected word line among the word lines (paragraph [0083], lines 9-11).
Regarding claim 13, Kim discloses the method of claim 12, wherein the victim word line comprises at least one of word lines adjacent to the selected word line.
Regarding claims 10 and 19, Kim (Fig. 16) shows the method of claim 7 and the method of claim 11, wherein the falling section is delayed from a falling edge where the driving voltage is transited to the off voltage (the delay is the time from VPP to VSS).
Regarding claims 14 and 20, Kim (Fig. 16) shows the method of claim 12, further comprising:
applying a driving voltage having a logic high level (VPP) to the aggressor word line during an enable section of the aggressor word line; and
applying the off voltage having a logic low level (ground or VBB21) to a-non-selected word lines among the word lines.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 7-14 and 18-20 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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.
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/HUAN HOANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2827