Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/537,601

POLYMER, MONOMER, RESIST COMPOSITION COMPRISING THE SAME AND METHOD OF FORMING PATTERN USING THE SAME

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Dec 12, 2023
Priority
Jun 27, 2023 — RE 10-2023-0082888
Examiner
FRASER, STEWART A
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
86%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 86% — above average
86%
Career Allowance Rate
1164 granted / 1352 resolved
+26.1% vs TC avg
Moderate +14% lift
Without
With
+14.2%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 5m
Avg Prosecution
26 currently pending
Career history
1368
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.4%
-39.6% vs TC avg
§103
77.7%
+37.7% vs TC avg
§102
11.7%
-28.3% vs TC avg
§112
4.2%
-35.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1352 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
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 . This is the initial office action for US Patent Application No. 18/537601 by Kang et al. Claims 1-20 are currently pending and have been fully considered. Priority Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b): (b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph: The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Claim 1 recites “a first repeating unit represented by Formula 1 below”. However, Formula 1 is not shown. Therefore, claim 1 and claims 2-19 which depend from claim, are considered to be indefinite. Claim 1, Lines 7-8, 10, 12 and 18 recite the limitation “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because a cyclic hydrocarbon group would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring hydrocarbon structure. Since a cyclic ring hydrocarbon cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 1, Line 20 recites the limitation “unsubstituted C1-C30 heteroaryl group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because heteroaryl groups (also known as heterocyclic groups) possess aromatic ring structures that must include more than 2 carbons. Since a heteroaryl group cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 3, Lines 1-2 recite the limitation “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because a cyclic hydrocarbon group would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring hydrocarbon structure. Since a cyclic ring hydrocarbon cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 4, Lines 1-2 recite the limitation “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because a cyclic hydrocarbon group would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring hydrocarbon structure. Since a cyclic ring hydrocarbon cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 6, Line 12 recites the limitation “unsubstituted C1-C30 heteroaryl group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because heteroaryl groups (also known as heterocyclic groups) possess aromatic ring structures that must include more than 2 carbons. Since a heteroaryl group cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 7 recites “the first repeating unit represented by Formula 1-1 below”. However, Formula 1-1 is not shown. Therefore, claim 7 is considered to be indefinite. Claim 8 recites “the first repeating unit is selected from compounds of Group I below”. However, Group I is not shown. Therefore, claim 8 is considered to be indefinite. Claim 9 recites “a second repeating unit represented by Formula 2 below”. However, Formula 2 is not shown. Therefore, claim 9 is considered to be indefinite. Claim 9, Lines 13-14 recite the limitation “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because a cyclic hydrocarbon group would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring hydrocarbon structure. Since a cyclic ring hydrocarbon cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 10, Lines 3-4 recite the limitation “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because a cyclic hydrocarbon group would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring hydrocarbon structure. Since a cyclic ring hydrocarbon cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 11 recites “a group represented by one of Formulae 5-1 to 5-12 below”. However, Formulae 5-1 to 5-12 are not shown. Therefore, claim 11 is considered to be indefinite. Claim 12 recites “the second repeating unit is represented by Formula 2-1 below”. However, Formula 2-1 is not shown. Therefore, claim 12 is considered to be indefinite. Claim 12, Line 8 recites the limitation “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because a cyclic hydrocarbon group would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring hydrocarbon structure. Since a cyclic ring hydrocarbon cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 13 recites “the second repeating unit is represented by one or more formulae selected from Group II below”. However, formulae selected from Group II are not shown. Therefore, claim 13 is considered to be indefinite. Claim 20 recites “A monomer represented by Formula 10 below”. However, Formula 10 is not shown. Therefore, claim 20 is considered to be indefinite. Claim 20, Lines 7, 10, 12 and 17 recite the limitation “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because a cyclic hydrocarbon group would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring hydrocarbon structure. Since a cyclic ring hydrocarbon cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Claim 20, Line 20 recites the limitation “unsubstituted C1-C30 heteroaryl group”. The limitation is considered to be indefinite because heteroaryl groups (also known as heterocyclic groups) possess aromatic ring structures that must include more than 2 carbons. Since a heteroaryl group cannot be made with 1 or 2 carbons, the aforementioned limitation is rendered indefinite. Specification The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: The specification includes similar issues to the 35 U.S.C. 112(b) rejections discussed above. There are several instances of “cyclic C1-C30…hydrocarbon group” and “unsubstituted C1-C30 heteroaryl group” listed in the specification. The aforementioned several instances are considered to be erroneous because cyclic and heteroaryl hydrocarbon groups would require at least 3 carbons to form a cyclic ring structure. Appropriate correction is required. Allowable Subject Matter The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) for the reasons stated above. For examination purposes, the formulas listed in Applicant’s Abstract were referenced for the prior art search. Applicant’s claimed polymer represented in Formula 1 and Applicant’s claimed monomer recited in Formula 10 do not appear to be taught or suggested by the prior art. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to STEWART A FRASER whose telephone number is (571)270-5126. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, 7am-4pm, 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, Miriam Stagg can be reached at 571-270-5256. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /STEWART A FRASER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1724
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 12, 2023
Application Filed
Jun 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
86%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+14.2%)
2y 5m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1352 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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