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. 18/568071 by Ishii et al.
Claims 1-12 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 § 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 1-3 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by Hatakeyama et al. (US 2021/0116808 A1), herein referred to as Hatakeyama.
Regarding claims 1-3, Hatakeyama teaches [0174] a positive resist composition comprising a base polymer (resin component) and a PAG monomer (acid generator component. The base polymer includes an ALG monomer (ALG Monomer 5, page 104) that has the following chemical structure:
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200
370
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The PAG monomer (PAG monomer 3, page 103) includes the following chemical structure:
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296
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The ALG monomer and PAG monomer compositions taught by Hatakeyama satisfy the chemical composition limitations recited in claims 1-3 and therefore. claims 1-3 are anticipated by Hatakeyama.
Regarding claim 12, Hatakeyama teaches [0021] a process for forming a pattern comprising the steps of applying the positive resist composition defined above onto a substrate to form a resist film thereon, exposing the resist film to high-energy radiation, and developing the exposed resist film in a developer.
Allowable Subject Matter
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claims 4-11 contain allowable subject matter because the prior art does not teach or suggest the claimed resist compositions. Hatakeyama teaches several resist compositions that comprise a base polymer comprising recurring units containing an imide group having an iodine-substituted aromatic group bonded thereto, and recurring units of at least one type selected from recurring units having a carboxyl group whose hydrogen is substituted by an acid labile group and recurring units having a phenolic hydroxyl group whose hydrogen is substituted by an acid labile group. Hatakeyama however does not teach or suggest the specific limitations recited in claims 4-11 comprising the specified combinations of claimed resin components and acid generator components.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Hatakeyama et al. (US 2010/0227274 A1) disclose a positive resist composition comprising polymerizable monomers and acid generator compounds.
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/STEWART A FRASER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1724
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