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 Invention I consisting of claims 2-10 and including linking claims 1 and 11 in the reply filed on July 10, 2026 is acknowledged.
Specification
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because appropriate guidelines indicate a preferred length between 50-150 words, thus the instant application’s abstract is considered too short and must be modified to meet this guideline. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
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, 2, and 7-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Elsherbini et al. (2023/0073026, hereafter Elsherbini ‘026).
Regarding claim 1, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a stacked package, comprising: a first die (114-3, Fig. 4, par. 0044) with one or more through-silicon-vias (TSV) (121, Fig. 4, par. 0044) extending from lower to upper surfaces of the first die; a second die (114-1, Fig. 4) on the first die, the first and second dies exchanging electrical signals with each other through the TSVs (par. 0044); a mold (133, Fig. 4, par. 0036) on the first die, the mold encapsulating sides of the second die; one or more through-mold cavities formed within the mold (par. 0057); and one or more thermal pillars (152, Fig. 4, par. 0044) formed in the one or more through-mold cavities, the one or more thermal pillars being thermally coupled with the first die (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 2, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a stacked package wherein the one or more thermal pillars are formed from copper (Cu) (par. 0057).
Regarding claim 7, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a stacked package further comprising: one or more TSV pads (132 thick, Fig. 1, 4) on the first die (114-3) within the mold (133), the one or more TSV pads being between a corresponding one or more TSVs (121) and the second die (114-1), the one or more TSV pads being electrically coupled to the corresponding one or more TSVs (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 8, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a stacked package wherein upper surfaces of the second die (114-1), the mold (133), and the one or more thermal pillars (152) are coplanar (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 9, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a stacked package further comprising: a substrate (102) on a lower surface of the first die (114-3) (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 10, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a stacked package wherein the stacked package is incorporated into an apparatus selected from the group consisting of a music player, a video player, an entertainment unit, a navigation device, a communications device, a mobile device, a mobile phone, a smartphone, a personal digital assistant, a fixed location terminal, a tablet computer, a computer, a wearable device, an Internet of things (IoT) device, a laptop computer, a server, and a device in an automotive vehicle (par. 0115).
Regarding claim 11, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a method of fabricating a stacked package, the method comprising: providing a first die (114-3) with one or more through-silicon-vias (TSV) (121) extending from lower to upper surfaces of the first die; providing a second die (114-1) on the first die, wherein the first die and the second die are configured to exchange electrical signals with each other through the TSVs (par. 0044); forming a mold (133) on the first die, wherein the mold encapsulates sides of the second die; forming one or more through-mold cavities within the mold (par. 0057); and forming one or more thermal pillars (152) in the one or more through-mold cavities, the one or more thermal pillars being thermally coupled with the first die (par. 0044) (Fig. 4).
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.
Claims 3-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Elsherbini ‘026 in view of Elsherbini et al. (2019/0385977, hereafter Elsherbini ‘977).
Regarding claim 3, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses stacked package further comprising: one or more thermal pads (110, Fig. 2, 4; par. 0032) on the first die (114-3), the one or more thermal pads being between a corresponding one or more thermal pillars (152) and the first die, wherein the one or more thermal pads are thermally coupled with the corresponding one or more thermal pillars (Fig. 4).
Elsherbini ‘026 fails to disclose thermal pads within the mold.
However, Elsherbini ‘977 teaches thermal pads (124, Fig. 1A, 4C; par. 0024, 0031) within the mold (430, Fig. 1A, 4C; par. 0057).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify Elsherbini ‘026 with Elsherbini ‘977 by placing pads within the mold in order to provide mechanical protection and electrical isolation while maintaining efficient pathway to dissipate heat away from die.
Regarding claim 4, in the embodiment discussed above, Elsherbini ‘026 fails to disclose a stacked package wherein at least one thermal pad is in direct contact with a corresponding at least one thermal pillar and in direct contact with an upper surface of the first die.
However, in a different embodiment, Elsherbini ‘026 discloses a stacked package wherein at least one thermal pad (132, Fig. 8I) is in direct contact with a corresponding at least one thermal pillar (152, Fig. 8I) and in direct contact with an upper surface of the first die (114-2, Fig. 8I).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify Elsherbini ‘026 by placing a thermal pad in direct contact with the die in order to eliminate air gaps and interfacial thermal resistance.
Regarding claim 5, Elsherbini ‘026 fails to disclose a stacked package wherein a diameter of at least one thermal pillar is 50 microns or greater.
However, Elsherbini ‘977 teaches a stacked package wherein a diameter of at least one thermal pillar (434, Fig. 4C) is 50 microns or greater (par. 0055).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify Elsherbini ‘026 with Elsherbini ‘977 by implementing thermal pillars with a diameter of at least 50 microns in order to ensure adequate area to minimize thermal resistance for efficient heat transfer while providing structural stability.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Elsherbini ‘026 in view of Li et al. (2023/0369268, hereafter Li)
Regarding claim 6, Elsherbini ‘026 fails to disclose a stacked package wherein at least two thermal pillars are of different sizes.
However, Li teaches a stacked package wherein at least two thermal pillars (24/24a, Fig. 3A, 4B-2) are of different sizes (par. 0040, 0048).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify Elsherbini ‘026 with Li by providing thermal pillars of different sizes in order to target heat concentration points while saving space and balancing thermal expansion stress.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHARLES M BRECHT whose telephone number is (571)272-9634. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri: 7:30am - 5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Marlon Fletcher can be reached at (572) 272-2063. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/C.M.B./ Examiner, Art Unit 2817
/MARLON T FLETCHER/ Supervisory Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2817
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