DETAILED ACTION
Examiner’s Note
In the case of amending the claimed invention, Applicant is respectfully requested to indicate the portion(s) of the specification which dictate(s) the structure relied on for proper interpretation and also to verify and ascertain the metes and bounds of the claimed invention.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention I (semiconductor device), reflected in claims 1-15 in the reply filed on 05/28/2026 is acknowledged. Claims 16-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142 (b), as being drawn to the nonelected group.
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 1-15 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.
Claims 1 and 14 recites “first metal type”, “second metal type”. This is not understood what characteristic of the metals is being used to define this grouping/type. The specification doesn’t have any description or example of metal elements of these two different types. For examination, no patentable weight will be given to these limitations or will be considered as nonexistent.
As claims 2-13 and 15 depend on the above rejected claim 1, they are also being rejected on the same reason.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-15 will be allowed after withdrawal of 35 USC § 112 as above.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding independent claim 1, the applicant has sufficiently claimed and defined a method of fabricating a semiconductor device, whereby the prior arts of record and to the examiner's knowledge do not teach or render obvious, at least to the skilled artisan, the instant invention regarding method of fabricating a semiconductor device comprising: applying a first photoresist and a second photoresist to the second metal layer, wherein the first photoresist spans a first portion of the second metal layer and the second photoresist spans a second portion of the second metal layer different from the first portion; and forming rows of the first metal layer, the semiconductor layer, and the second metal layer based on etching exposed portions of the first metal layer, the semiconductor layer, and the second metal layer between the first photoresist and the second photoresist. The closest prior art of record, Chung (US 20110159662 A1, fig. 1-11) teaches, forming a first metal layer (116, fig. 7) of a first metal type on a first substrate layer (102); forming a semiconductor layer (108a, polysilicon, ¶ [0027]) on the first metal layer (116); forming a second metal layer (120) of the first metal type on the semiconductor layer (108a), but fails to teach, the two steps of forming photoresist on the second metal layer and forming rows of the first metal layer, the semiconductor layer, and the second metal layer based on etching exposed portions of the first metal layer, the semiconductor layer, and the second metal layer between the first photoresist and the second photoresist. None of the prior arts of record, either singularly or in combination, can be used to modify the device of Chung to teach the above missing feature with obvious motivation or without breaking the device of Chung.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOHAMMAD M HOQUE whose telephone number is (571)272-6266 and email address is mohammad.hoque@uspto.gov. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM-7PM 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, Kretelia Graham can be reached on (571) 272-5055. 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.
/MOHAMMAD M HOQUE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2817
Prosecution Insights