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
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 2, 4, 6, 11, 12 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Feezell et al. (US 7,480,322) in view of Koelle (US PG Pub 2007/0041416).
Regarding claim 1, Feezell et al. disclose: a substrate (1) having a first surface (bottom surface) and a second surface (top surface) opposed to the first surface (Fig. 1, col. 4, lines 1-15); an epitaxial growth layer including a first semiconductor layer (4) that is of a first electrically conductive type (N), an active layer (2), and a second semiconductor layer (3) that is of a second electrically conductive type (P) sequentially stacked on the second surface by epitaxial growth (Fig. 1, col. 4, lines 15-41), an electrode (10) electrically coupled to the first semiconductor layer (4); a current injection region (9) formed on a surface of the second semiconductor layer (3) on side opposite to the substrate, the current injection region being electrically coupled to the second semiconductor layer and having light transparency (Fig. 1, col 4, line 57 to col. 5, line 25); a first reflective layer (6) formed on the first surface at a position corresponding to a predetermined thickness of the epitaxial growth layer, the first reflective layer including a curve mirror structure (Fig. 1, col. 4 , lines 29-37); and a second reflective layer (5) formed on a surface of the current injection region on side opposite to the second semiconductor layer (Fig. 1, col. 4 , lines 29-37).
Feezell et al. do not disclose: the epitaxial growth layer having distributions in thickness and resonator length.
Koelle discloses: the epitaxial growth layer (112, 110, 120, 128, 134, 140) having distributions in thickness and resonator length (Fig. 1, [0020]-[0025]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Feezell by forming the epitaxial growth layers having a distributions in thickness in order to emit more than one wavelength range from the surface emitting laser device. The device as modified disclose: the epitaxial growth layer having distributions in resonator length.
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Fig. 1 of Feezell
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Fig. 1 of Koelle
Regarding claim 2, Feezell as modified disclose: wherein a stacked structure of the epitaxial growth layer is uniform within the second surface (top surface of substrate 1 has uniform thickness) (Feezell, Fig. 1, col. 4, lines 1-15).
Regarding claim 4, Feezell as modified disclose: wherein a difference in optical film thickness of the epitaxial growth layer corresponds to an adjacent longitudinal mode spacing or more (inherently taught by the device of Freezell as modified).
Regarding claim 6, Feezell as modified disclose: wherein a single layer in the epitaxial growth layer has the distribution in thickness (layers 120, 128, 134, 140 having distributions in thickness) (Koelle, Fig. 1, [0020]-[0025]).
Regarding claim 11, Feezell as modified disclose: wherein the epitaxial growth layer includes at least one or more materials selected from among GaN, InGaN, AlGaN, AlGaInN, GaAs, AlGaAs, AlAs, InGaAs, AlInGaP, InGaP, InP, InAlAs, AlInGaAs, AlGaAsP, InGaAs, InGaSb, and AlGaSb (Feezell, col. 4, lines 20-28).
Regarding claim 12, Feezell et al. disclose: A light-emitting device comprising a plurality of surface emitting elements arranged (col. 1, lines 58-64), the surface emitting elements each including a substrate (1) having a first surface (bottom surface) and a second surface (top surface) opposed to the first surface (Fig. 1, col. 4, lines 1-15); an epitaxial growth layer including a first semiconductor layer (4) that is of a first electrically conductive type (N), an active layer (2), and a second semiconductor layer (3) that is of a second electrically conductive type (P) sequentially stacked on the second surface by epitaxial growth (Fig. 1, col. 4, lines 15-41), an electrode (10) electrically coupled to the first semiconductor layer (4); a current injection region (9) formed on a surface of the second semiconductor layer (3) on side opposite to the substrate, the current injection region being electrically coupled to the second semiconductor layer and having light transparency (Fig. 1, col 4, line 57 to col. 5, line 25); a first reflective layer (6) formed on the first surface at a position corresponding to a predetermined thickness of the epitaxial growth layer, the first reflective layer including a curve mirror structure (Fig. 1, col. 4 , lines 29-37); and a second reflective layer (5) formed on a surface of the current injection region on side opposite to the second semiconductor layer (Fig. 1, col. 4 , lines 29-37).
Feezell et al. do not disclose: the epitaxial growth layer having distributions in thickness and resonator length.
Koelle discloses: the epitaxial growth layer (112, 110, 120, 128, 134, 140) having distributions in thickness and resonator length (Fig. 1, [0020]-[0025]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Feezell by forming the epitaxial growth layers having a distributions in thickness in order to emit more than one wavelength range from the surface emitting laser device. The device as modified disclose: the epitaxial growth layer having distributions in resonator length.
Regarding claim 13, the apparatus of claim 1 discloses the claimed method (see the rejection of claim 1).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 5 and 7-10 objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 3 is allowable as the prior art fails to anticipate or render obvious the claimed limitations including “…wherein the epitaxial growth layer has the distributions in thickness and resonator length within the second surface.”
Claim 5 is allowable as the prior art fails to anticipate or render obvious the claimed limitations including “…wherein each of a plurality of layers in the epitaxial growth layer has the distribution in thickness.”
Claim 7 is allowable as the prior art fails to anticipate or render obvious the claimed limitations including “…wherein an interface of a stacked structure of the epitaxial growth layer is formed in a linear shape with an inclination relative to the second surface as viewed from a plane direction of the second surface.”
Claim 8 is allowable as the prior art fails to anticipate or render obvious the claimed limitations including “…wherein a part of an interface of a stacked structure of the epitaxial growth layer is formed in a linear shape with an inclination relative to the second surface as viewed from a plane direction of the second surface.”
Claim 9 is allowable as the prior art fails to anticipate or render obvious the claimed limitations including “…wherein an interface of a stacked structure of the epitaxial growth layer is formed in a non-linear shape as viewed from a plane direction of the second surface.”
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Mitomo et al. (US PG Pub 2020/0028325) disclose: a light-emitting device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a laminate. The laminate includes an active layer, a first semiconductor layer, and a second semiconductor layer. The first semiconductor layer and the second semiconductor layer sandwich the active layer in between. The light-emitting device further includes a current confining layer, a concave-shaped first reflecting mirror provided on side of the first semiconductor layer, and a second reflecting mirror provided on side of the second semiconductor layer. The current confining layer has an opening. The first reflecting mirror and the second reflecting mirror sandwich the laminate and the opening in between. The light-emitting device further includes a first reflecting layer and a phosphor layer. The first reflecting layer is disposed at a position opposed to the first reflecting mirror with a predetermined gap in between. The phosphor layer is disposed between the first reflecting mirror and the first reflecting layer, and performs wavelength conversion on light leaking from the first reflecting mirror (Abstract). David et al. (US PG Pub 2020/0366067) disclose: optical devices and methods of manufacturing and operating such optical devices. In an embodiment, an optical device includes a substrate, a multi-layer structure having a first surface in contact with a first surface of the substrate, a first mirror disposed over a second surface of the multi-layer structure, a second mirror disposed over a second surface of the substrate, an intermediate mirror within the multi-layer structure, and an optical gain structure within the multi-layer structure. The device may include a first optically resonant cavity within the multi-layer structure, bounded by the first mirror and the intermediate mirror, where the first optically resonant cavity includes the optical gain structure. The device may further include a second optically resonant cavity, bounded by the first and second mirrors, where the second optically resonant cavity includes the first optically resonant cavity, the second optically reflective layer, and the substrate (Abstract).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to XINNING(TOM) NIU whose telephone number is (571)270-1437. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9:30am-6:00pm.
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/XINNING(Tom) NIU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2828
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