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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated- by Riege (2012/0145668).
Riege discloses a method of forming a sloped resist in a multi-layer stack (abstract, figure 1 and 2B), wherein the method includes a reticle (mask) having non-overlapping transparent and opaque bands (auxiliary pattern, 222, 224. Separated as a desired interval from the main pattern) surrounding a transparent feature 218 (main pattern; see figure 2B) to pattern a multi-layer stack on a substrate 202, comprising a metal layer 204, a dielectric layer 206, and a resist 208. The pattern of the reticle would form a pattern opening 230 ([0034]-[0035], [0038]) corresponding to the space/ main pattern 218, between the opaque regions 226 having a sloped sidewall, wherein the opaque patterns 222 and 224 are auxiliary patterns and not printed on the resist, due to the shadowing of light of the opaque portions to assist the formation of the desired sloped sidewalls ([0038]-[0040]).
The reference demonstrates a sloped pattern and given the description of the instant invention in figures 2 and 3 wherein “irregularities” are curved or worn as opposed to the sloped or inclined line pattern, the reference material would meet the limitations of the instant claim 1 and the instant claim 10 for the method of exposing the photoresist to form the sloped sidewall. The reference material is patterned with a pre-determined auxiliary and main pattern, spaced apart as pre-determined by the user (instant claim 2) with respect to the shadowing needed to form the desired sloped pattern through exposure (instant claim 3), wherein (as seen above) the auxiliary patterns are present on each side of the main pattern 218 (instant claim 6), and the size of the main pattern 218 would be designed in conjunction with the auxiliary pattern to have the desired size and shape as pre-determined by the designer (instant claim 7; [0043], [0045]).
With respect to the property limitations of the instant claims 4, 5, 8, and 9, the reference teaches that the spacing of the main pattern and the auxiliary patterns, and the size of the auxiliary features (width) may be a wide range of spaces based on user design ([0040]), wherein the reticle includes 42 test structures (main/ transparent an auxiliary/ opaque), with the smallest feature size being 0.6 microns and the resist thickness is 1.5 to 8 microns ([0040]-[0048]), wherein the thickness of the resist R in the Z direction to the feature width Y (as defined in [0032] of the instant specification), and when a feature is as defined by table 1 or is examples in [0071], the resist in 4 microns thick, with pattern sizes and transparent features of 0.15 (and other in Table 1 and [0040]), the ratios w÷ t and s÷ t are each < 0.028, thus the reference example meets the limitations of the instant claims 4, 5, 8, and 9.
Claim(s) 1-3, 6, 7, and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Nakagawa et al (2015/0234268).
Nakagawa et al disclose a mask pattern correction method and method of patterning a resist comprising a mask having a first and second auxiliary pattern, and main pattern to be transferred to a resist layer (abstract).
The resist layer RB is coated onto a substrate K, and underlayer/ processed layer TB ([0020]-[0023], fig 1A to 1D; instant multi-layer film), meeting the limitations of the instant claim 1 and claim 10 for the method of patterning.
The mask produces a resist pattern R, having a sloped profile as instantly claimed, and the pattern is assisted by auxiliary patterns 23 and 24 on all sides of main pattern 22 to reduce the rounding of the resist pattern (irregularities, [0017; figures 2A to 2D, [0025]-[0028]; instant claims 1, 6). The arrangement and size of the main pattern and auxiliary patterns are designed according to the desired size of the main pattern through exposure (instant claims 2, 3, 7; [0028]-[0035]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Hong et al (2008/0182415) disclose a method of patterning a resist, however, the reference fails to specifically teach a multi-layer pattern, and instead a multi-layer reticle/ mask.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AMANDA C WALKE whose telephone number is (571)272-1337. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Thursday 5:30am to 4pm.
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/AMANDA C. WALKE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1722
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