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
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I and Species A1 in the reply filed on January 6, 2026, is acknowledged.
Claims 5-13 and 17-22 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention and species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on January 6, 2026.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
Claim Interpretation
Claim 3 recites the step of “forming the single-crystal copper layer on the graphene layer of the substrate by atomic deposition.” The specification merely repeats the claim language by reiterating that “atomic deposition” is used to form the single-crystal copper layer in at least ¶¶[0012]-[0013], ¶¶[0068]-[0074], ¶[0143], and ¶[0145] of the published application without further elaborating on what, exactly, constitutes “atomic deposition.” In Example 1 at ¶¶[0102]-[0103] of the published application, deposition of the single crystal copper layer is disclosed as being performed using a “6N high-purity copper target material as the copper source, in a mixed gas atmosphere” which is understood as utilizing sputter deposition. Thus, the process of “atomic deposition” as recited in at least claim 3 is interpreted to mean any vapor deposition technique which is known in the art such as sputter deposition.
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 1-4 and 16 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
The term “low-transmission-loss” in claim 1 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “low-transmission-loss” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. Since neither the claims nor the specification identify how low the transmission loss must be in order to be considered as a low-transmission-loss copper material, its recitation in claim 1 is therefore considered to be indefinite. Dependent claims 2-4 and 16 are similarly rejected due to their dependence on claim 1.
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 set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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.
Claims 1-4 and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chinese Patent Appl. Publ. No. CN 107354506 A to Peng, et al. (hereinafter “Peng”) in view of U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2020/0402796 to Ning, et al. (“Ning”).
Regarding claim 1, Peng teaches a preparation method for a low-transmission-loss single-crystal copper material (see the Abstract, Figs 1-12, and entire reference which teach a method of depositing a single crystal Cu(111) film), wherein the preparation method comprises:
forming a single-crystal copper layer on a substrate with a surface, in an atmosphere of a mixed gas of argon and hydrogen at a temperature of 800-1065 °C (see the Invention Contents section at pp. 2-3 as well as Example 1 at p. 4 which teach that a single-crystal copper layer is formed on the surface of a sapphire single crystal by sputter deposition in an atmosphere of a mixed gas having a pressure of 4×10-4 Pa followed by post-deposition annealing at a final temperature of 1,000 °C in a reducing atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and argon);
wherein a volume ratio of argon to hydrogen in the mixed gas is (10-20):1 (see the Invention Contents section at pp. 2-3 as well as Example 1 at p. 4 which teach that post-deposition annealing is performed in a reducing atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and argon with a flow ratio of argon to hydrogen of 500:10 to 50 which necessarily encompasses a 50 to 10:1 argon to hydrogen ratio).
Peng does not teach that the single-crystal copper layer is formed on a substrate with a surface of a graphene layer and that this is followed by peeling off the single-crystal copper layer from the substrate. However, in Figs. 1-3 and ¶¶[0039]-[0066] as well as elsewhere throughout the entire reference Ning teaches a method of depositing and transferring a Group III-nitride such as GaN from a sapphire substrate to a second target substrate. This is achieved by initially transferring initially growing one or more layers of crystalline graphene on a copper foil by CVD and then transferring the graphene onto a sapphire substrate. The graphene-transferred sapphire substrate was then placed in a reaction chamber and an epitaxial GaN layer was grown thereupon by MOCVD from ammonia and a Ga precursor gases. The presence of graphene at the film-substrate interface facilitates lift-off of the epitaxially grown GaN layer such that it may be transferred to a different substrate such as Si, flexible PMMA, or to a diamond substrate. Thus, a person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention would look to the teachings of Ning and would be motivated to provide a crystalline graphene layer on the surface of the sapphire substrate in the method of Peng for the epitaxial growth of single crystal copper thereupon in order to facilitate release of the deposited single crystal copper layer so that it may become free-standing or transferred to a different support substrate for further processing. The combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results has been held to support a prima facie determination of obviousness. All the claimed elements are known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could combine the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, with the combination yielding nothing more than predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art. KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, __, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395 (2007). See also, MPEP 2143(A).
Regarding claim 2, Peng does not teach that the graphene layer is a single-crystal graphene layer. However, in ¶¶[0041]-[0050] Ning teaches that single crystal graphene layers are formed by CVD growth onto a copper foil and are then transferred to the sapphire substrate for epitaxial growth of single crystal GaN. Thus, a person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention would be motivated to utilize single crystal graphene as a release layer in order to promote the epitaxial growth of a higher quality Cu single crystal with fewer defects in the method of Peng that may be readily removed from the underlying sapphire substrate after film growth has completed.
Regarding claim 3, Peng teaches that a preparation step of the single crystal copper layer comprises: forming the single-crystal copper layer on the substrate by atomic deposition (see the Invention Contents section at pp. 2-3 as well as Example 1 at p. 4 which teach that a single-crystal copper layer is formed on the surface of a sapphire single crystal by sputter deposition in an atmosphere of a mixed gas having a pressure of 4×10-4 Pa), but does not teach that the single-crystal layer is formed on the graphene layer. However, as noted supra with respect to the rejection of claim 1, in Figs. 1-3 and ¶¶[0039]-[0066] as well as elsewhere throughout the entire reference Ning teaches a method of depositing and transferring a Group III-nitride such as GaN from a sapphire substrate to a second target substrate. This is achieved by initially transferring initially growing one or more layers of crystalline graphene on a copper foil by CVD and then transferring the graphene onto a sapphire substrate. The graphene-transferred sapphire substrate was then placed in a reaction chamber and an epitaxial GaN layer was grown thereupon by MOCVD from ammonia and a Ga precursor gases. The presence of graphene at the film-substrate interface facilitates lift-off of the epitaxially grown GaN layer such that it may be transferred to a different substrate such as Si, flexible PMMA, or to a diamond substrate. Thus, a person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention would look to the teachings of Ning and would be motivated to provide a crystalline graphene layer on the surface of the sapphire substrate in the method of Peng for the epitaxial growth of single crystal copper thereupon in order to facilitate release of the deposited single crystal copper layer so that it may become free-standing or transferred to a different support substrate for further processing.
Peng and Ning do not teach that the deposition itself is performed in a mixed gas atmosphere of argon and hydrogen at the temperature of 800-1065°C. However, in pp. 2-3 of the Invention Contents and Example 1 at p. 4 Peng teaches performing a post-deposition annealing step at a final temperature of 1,000 °C in a reducing atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and argon gas in order to avoid oxidizing the copper and, as shown specifically in Figs. 7-9, to promote the formation of a single crystal with a smooth and high quality surface. In this regard it is noted that sapphire and copper have melting points of approximately 2,030 and 1,085 °C, respectively, and the annealing step itself is performed at a final temperature of 1,000 °C in an atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and argon. Accordingly, a person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention would start with a deposition temperature in the vicinity of 1,000 °C and would utilize routine experimentation to determine the optimal substrate temperature during sputter deposition using an argon and hydrogen gas mixture to generate the sputtering plasma with the motivation for doing so being to produce a higher quality copper single crystal with fewer defects, a smooth surface, and no contamination by copper oxides.
Regarding claim 4, Peng teaches that a temperature of preparing the single-crystal copper layer is 900-1000°C and the volume ratio of argon and hydrogen in the mixed gas is (13-15):1; and optionally, the substrate is a sapphire substrate whose surface is the graphene layer (see the Invention Contents section at pp. 2-3 as well as Example 1 at p. 4 which teach the sputter-deposited single-crystal copper layer is subject to post-deposition annealing at a final temperature of 1,000 °C in a reducing atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and argon with a flow ratio of argon to hydrogen of 500:10 to 50 which necessarily encompasses a 50 to 10:1 argon to hydrogen ratio which encompasses the entirety of the claimed range).
Regarding claim 16, Peng teaches that a preparation step of the single crystal copper layer comprises: forming the single-crystal copper layer on the substrate by atomic deposition (see the Invention Contents section at pp. 2-3 as well as Example 1 at p. 4 which teach that a single-crystal copper layer is formed on the surface of a sapphire single crystal by sputter deposition in an atmosphere of a mixed gas having a pressure of 4×10-4 Pa), but does not teach that the single-crystal layer is formed on the graphene layer. However, as noted supra with respect to the rejection of claim 1, in Figs. 1-3 and ¶¶[0039]-[0066] as well as elsewhere throughout the entire reference Ning teaches a method of depositing and transferring a Group III-nitride such as GaN from a sapphire substrate to a second target substrate. This is achieved by initially transferring initially growing one or more layers of crystalline graphene on a copper foil by CVD and then transferring the graphene onto a sapphire substrate. The graphene-transferred sapphire substrate was then placed in a reaction chamber and an epitaxial GaN layer was grown thereupon by MOCVD from ammonia and a Ga precursor gases. The presence of graphene at the film-substrate interface facilitates lift-off of the epitaxially grown GaN layer such that it may be transferred to a different substrate such as Si, flexible PMMA, or to a diamond substrate. Thus, a person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention would look to the teachings of Ning and would be motivated to provide a crystalline graphene layer on the surface of the sapphire substrate in the method of Peng for the epitaxial growth of single crystal copper thereupon in order to facilitate release of the deposited single crystal copper layer so that it may become free-standing or transferred to a different support substrate for further processing.
Peng and Ning do not teach that the deposition itself is performed in a mixed gas atmosphere of argon and hydrogen at the temperature of 800-1065°C. However, in pp. 2-3 of the Invention Contents and Example 1 at p. 4 Peng teaches performing a post-deposition annealing step at a final temperature of 1,000 °C in a reducing atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and argon gas in order to avoid oxidizing the copper and, as shown specifically in Figs. 7-9, to promote the formation of a single crystal with a smooth and high quality surface. In this regard it is noted that sapphire and copper have melting points of approximately 2,030 and 1,085 °C, respectively, and the annealing step itself is performed at a final temperature of 1,000 °C in an atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and argon. Accordingly, a person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention would start with a deposition temperature in the vicinity of 1,000 °C and would utilize routine experimentation to determine the optimal substrate temperature during sputter deposition using an argon and hydrogen gas mixture to generate the sputtering plasma with the motivation for doing so being to produce a higher quality copper single crystal with fewer defects, a smooth surface, and no contamination by copper oxides.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. In Figs. 1-5 and ¶¶[0032]-[0052] U.S. Patent Appl. Publ. No. 2017/00223828 to Minas H. Tanielian teaches a method of depositing a metallic overlay (400) over graphene members (100a-d) provided on a substrate (200).
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/KENNETH A BRATLAND JR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1714