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 § 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.
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.
Claim(s) 1-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Katsunuma (U.S. 2016/0379834) in view of Himori et al. (U.S. 2014/0206199) or Okayama et al. (U.S. 2014/0291286).
Referring to Figure 3 and paragraphs [0040]-[0071], Katsunuma discloses a plasma processing apparatus, comprising: a chamber 12 (par.[0040]); a substrate supporting table PD, having a lower electrode LE, provided within the chamber (par. [0042]); a gas supply 40 configured to supply a processing gas containing a fluorocarbon gas and a rare gas into the chamber (par.[0050]); a high frequency power supply 62 configured to generate a high frequency power to excite a gas within the chamber (par.[0054]); and a controller CNT configured to control the gas supply and the high frequency power supply, wherein the controller performs a first control of controlling the gas supply to supply the processing gas into the chamber and controlling the high frequency power supply to supply the high frequency power to form a deposit containing fluorocarbon from plasma formed from the processing gas on a substrate placed on the substrate supporting table while a magnetic field is not formed (ST1-pars.[0057], [0060]-[0062]), and the controller CNT performs a second control of controlling the gas supply to supply the rare gas into the chamber, controlling the high frequency power supply to supply the high frequency power to supply rare gas ions to the substrate on which the deposit is formed (ST2-pars.[0057], [0071]-[0081]).
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Katsunuma fails to teach an electromagnet is configured to form a magnetic field within an interior space of the chamber; a drive power supply configured to supply a current to the electromagnet; and the controller performs a second control of controlling the gas supply to supply the rare gas into the chamber, controlling the high frequency power supply to supply the high frequency power and controlling the drive power supply to form a magnetic field distribution in which a horizontal component on an edge side of the substrate is higher than a horizontal component on a center of the substrate by the electromagnet to supply rare gas ions to the substrate on which the deposit is formed.
Referring to Figures 1, 11A-11B, paragraphs [0011], [0045], [0054]-[0057], [0060], Himori et al. teach a plasma processing apparatus wherein an electromagnet 30 is configured to form a magnetic field within an interior space of the chamber (par.[0048]); a drive power supply (i.e. current source) configured to supply a current to the electromagnet (par.[0048]); and the controller CNT performs a second control of controlling the gas supply to supply the rare gas into the chamber, controlling the high frequency power supply to supply the high frequency power and controlling the drive power supply to form a magnetic field distribution in which a horizontal component on an edge side of the substrate is higher than a horizontal component on a center of the substrate by the electromagnet to supply rare gas ions to the substrate on which the deposit is formed (par.[0052]). The electromagnets 30 help suppress non-uniformity of the etching rate by controlling the plasma density distribution through magnetic field distribution (par.[0011]). Referring to Figure 1, paragraphs [0092]-[0095], Okayama et al. teach a plasma processing apparatus wherein an electromagnet 30 is configured to form a magnetic field within an interior space of the chamber (par.[0092]); a drive power supply (i.e. current source) configured to supply a current to the electromagnet (par.[0092]); and the controller CNT performs a second control of controlling the gas supply to supply the rare gas into the chamber, controlling the high frequency power supply to supply the high frequency power and controlling the drive power supply to form a magnetic field distribution in which a horizontal component on an edge side of the substrate is higher than a horizontal component on a center of the substrate by the electromagnet to supply rare gas ions to the substrate on which the deposit is formed (par.[0095]). The electromagnets 30 help suppress non-uniformity of the etching rate by controlling the plasma density distribution through magnetic field distribution (par.[0094]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the apparatus of Katsunuma with an electromagnet is configured to form a magnetic field within an interior space of the chamber; a drive power supply configured to supply a current to the electromagnet; and modify the controller to perform a second control of controlling the gas supply to supply the rare gas into the chamber, controlling the high frequency power supply to supply the high frequency power and controlling the drive power supply to form a magnetic field distribution in which a horizontal component on an edge side of the substrate is higher than a horizontal component on a center of the substrate by the electromagnet to supply rare gas ions to the substrate on which the deposit is formed as taught by Himori et al. or Okayama et al. in order to suppress non-uniformity of the etching rate by controlling the plasma density distribution through magnetic field distribution.
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With respect to claim 2, the plasma processing apparatus of Katsunuma in view of Himori et al. and Okayama et al. further includes the wherein the fluorocarbon gas contains a C4F8 gas and/or a C4F6 gas (Katsunuma-par.[0050]).
With respect to claim 3, the plasma processing apparatus of Katsunuma in view of Himori et al. and Okayama et al. further includes wherein the controller CNT is configured to alternately repeat the first control and the second control (Katsunuma-repeat loop-Fig. 1, par.[0057], Himori et al.-par.[0052]), Okayama et al.-pars.[0095],[0138]).
With respect to claim 4, the plasma processing apparatus of Katsunuma in view of Himori et al. and Okayama et al. further includes wherein the substrate has a first region formed of a silicon containing material and a second region formed of a metal containing material, and the silicon containing material is SiO2, SiOC or SiOCH (Katsunuma-par.[0038]).
With respect to claim 5, the plasma processing apparatus of Katsunuma in view of Himori et al. and Okayama et al. further includes wherein the substrate has a first region formed of a silicon containing material and a second region formed of a metal containing material, and the metal containing material is any one of metal materials of titanium, tungsten, zirconium, aluminum, tantalum, cobalt or ruthenium, or an oxide, a nitride or a carbide of the corresponding metal material (Katsunuma-par.[0039]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Sonoda et al.’909, Iwano et al.’436, Yokota et al.’759, Suemitsu et al.’582, Iwano et al.’780, Yokota et al.’635, Takahashi et al.’639, Iwase et al.’459, Kondo’407, Yokota et al.’898, Okayama et al.’286, and Kobayashi et al.’559 teach a controller used to control a gas supply, a high frequency power supply, and an electromagnet.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Michelle CROWELL whose telephone number is (571)272-1432. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 10:00am-6:00pm.
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/Michelle CROWELL/Examiner, Art Unit 1716
/SYLVIA MACARTHUR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1716
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