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.
Claim(s) 1-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yu (USPGPUB DOCUMENT: 2018/0101082, hereinafter Yu) of Cui) in view of Cui(CN110379871, examiner uses machine translation, hereinafter Cui).
Re claim 1 Yu discloses a photodetector, comprising a slab structure(220a/220b), a waveguide structure(101/106), a light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091], a first electrode structure(232a/232b) and a second electrode structure(232a/232b), wherein the waveguide structure(101/106) extends into the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; a first side, on which a first sidewall(left/right sidewall) of the waveguide structure(101/106) is positioned, is tangent to a second side, on which a second sidewall(left/right sidewall) of outer sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] is positioned; and the waveguide structure(101/106) is configured to import incident light into the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] in a direction tangent to the second side; the slab structure(220a/220b) surrounds the waveguide structure(101/106) and the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; and the first electrode structure(232a/232b) is positioned inside the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; the second electrode structure(232a/232b) is positioned outside the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] and is in contact with the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; and the first electrode structure(232a/232b) and the second electrode structure(232a/232b) collect different types of carriers.
Yu does not disclose an absorption structure, the imported light is confined to travel annularly within the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] by total internal reflection of sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091], and the imported light is coupled into the absorption structure through the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; the absorption structure is at least partially positioned on the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; the coupled light is confined to travel annularly within the absorption structure by total internal reflection of sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the absorption structure, and the coupled light is converted into electrons[0031] and holes; the first electrode structure(232a/232b) and the second electrode structure(232a/232b) are configured to collect electrons[0031] or holes flowing via the absorption structure and the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091];
Cui discloses an absorption structure(30 of Cui),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to apply the teachings of Cui to the teachings of Yu in order to improve the responsiveness of a photodetector without extending the absorption length and without affecting the bandwidth [pg1 last para, Cui]. In doing so, the imported light is confined to travel annularly within the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] by total internal reflection of sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091], and the imported light is coupled into the absorption structure(30 of Cui) through the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; the absorption structure(30 of Cui) is at least partially positioned on the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; the coupled light is confined to travel annularly within the absorption structure(30 of Cui) by total internal reflection of sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the absorption structure, and the coupled light is converted into electrons[0031] and holes; the first electrode structure(232a/232b) and the second electrode structure(232a/232b) are configured to collect electrons[0031] or holes flowing via the absorption structure(30 of Cui) and the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091];
Re claim 2 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 1, wherein the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] comprises a first doped region and a second doped region surrounding the first doped region; and a doping type of the first doped region is opposite to a doping type of the second doped region;the first electrode structure(232a/232b) is positioned inside the first doped region and is in contact with the first doped region, and the first electrode structure(232a/232b) is configured to collect electrons[0031] or holes flowing via the absorption structure and the first doped region; and the second electrode structure(232a/232b) is configured to collect electrons[0031] or holes flowing via the absorption structure and the second doped region.
Re claim 3 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 2, further comprising an intrinsic region positioned between the first doped region and the second doped region, wherein a material of the intrinsic region is the same as a material of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; or the material of the intrinsic region is the same as a material of the absorption structure.
Re claim 4 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 2, further comprising a first intrinsic region and a second intrinsic region that are positioned between the first doped region and the second doped region, wherein the first intrinsic region and the second intrinsic region are sequentially stacked along a direction of a thickness of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; anda material of the first intrinsic region is the same as a material of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; and a material of the second intrinsic region is the same as a material of the absorption structure.
Re claim 5 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 3 or 4claim 3,wherein a sum of projections of the first doped region, the intrinsic region, and the second doped region on a preset plane covers a projection of the absorption structure on the preset plane; and the projection of the absorption structure on the preset plane covers the projection of the intrinsic region on the preset plane; andthe preset plane is perpendicular to a direction of a thickness of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091].
Re claim 6 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 2, wherein the first electrode structure(232a/232b) comprises a first electrode, a first electrode contact region, and a third doped region; the third doped region is positioned inside the first doped region and is in contact with the first doped region; the first electrode contact region is positioned on a surface of the third doped region and a region with a certain depth downward from the surface of the third doped region, the first electrode is positioned on the first electrode contact region; and the first electrode is configured to collect electrons[0031] or holes flowing sequentially along the absorption structure, the first doped region, the third doped region, and the first electrode contact region; andthe second electrode structure(232a/232b) comprises a second electrode, a second electrode contact region, and a fourth doped region; the fourth doped region surrounds the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091], the second electrode contact region is positioned on a surface of the fourth doped region and a region with a certain depth downward from the surface of the fourth doped region, the second electrode is positioned on the second electrode contact region; and the second electrode is configured to collect electrons[0031] or holes flowing sequentially along the absorption structure, the second doped region, and the fourth doped region.
Re claim 7 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 6, wherein a doping concentration of the second doped region is less than or equal to a doping concentration of the fourth doped region, the doping concentration of the fourth doped region is less than a doping concentration of the second electrode contact region, a doping concentration of the first doped region is less than or equal to a doping concentration of the third doped region, and the dopinaconcentration of the third doped region is less than a doping concentration of the first electrode contact region.
Re claim 8 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 6, wherein the first electrode contact region is remote from the absorption structure, a thickness of the third doped region is less than or equal to a thickness of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091]; and a thickness of the waveguide structure(101/106) is the same as the thickness of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091].
Re claim 9 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 1, wherein a shape of a projection of the waveguide structure(101/106) on a preset plane comprises an elongated shape;a shape of a projection of the outer sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] on the preset plane comprises an enclosed shape formed by at least one of at least one straight line and/or at least one curve, and an angle formed by the second side, on which the second sidewall(left/right sidewall) of the outer sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] is positioned, and a third side, on which a third sidewall(left/right sidewall) of the outer sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] is positioned, is an obtuse angle; and the third sidewall(left/right sidewall) is a sidewall(left/right sidewall) where the incident light is reflected for a first time after the incident light enters the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091].
Re claim 10 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 9, wherein the shape of the projection of the outer sidewall(left/right sidewall)s of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091] on the preset plane comprises one of:a circle; an enclosed shape formed by connecting a plurality of curves; an enclosed shape formed by connecting a plurality of straight lines and a plurality of curves; or a polygon.
Re claim 11 Yu and Cui disclose the photodetector of claim 4, wherein a sum of projections of the first doped region, the first intrinsic region, the second intrinsic region, and the second doped region on a preset plane covers a projection of the absorption structure on the preset plane; and the projection of the absorption structure on the preset plane covers the projection of the first intrinsic region and the second intrinsic region on the preset plane; andthe preset plane is perpendicular to a direction of a thickness of the light trapping structure(205/208/209)[0091].
Conclusion
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/PATRICIA D VALENZUELA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2812
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