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 .
Response to Amendment
Claims 1-24 are pending in the Preliminary Amendment filed 06/26/2024.
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.
(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.
Claims 1-5, 10-11, and 13-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kim et al. (US 20120040528 A1).
As to claim 1, Kim discloses a method of planarizing [Abstract; Figs. 1-9], the method comprising:
placing a mask 42/72 formed above a layer 30/20 into an etch chamber [para. 0048, “etching apparatus”], wherein the mask comprises:
a first patterned structure 42 comprising at least a first material 40 [para. 0042-43, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”];
a second patterned structure 72 comprising at least a second material 70 above the first patterned structure 42 [para. 0064-66, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”], wherein portions of the second patterned structure intersect the first patterned structure to form intersections and at least an opening O, and wherein the opening exposes the layer 30/20 [Figs. 6-7]; and
a structure 64/32 comprising a third material vertically between the portions of the second patterned structure 72 and the layer 30/20, wherein the third material 64/30 is different from the first material or the second material [para. 0053, “coating 60… SOG (Spin On Glass), ARC (Anti-Reflecting Coating layer), photo resist, and carbon mask layer may be used”; 60[Wingdings font/0xE0]62[Wingdings font/0xE0]64; para. 0038, “first sacrificial layer 30 may be an Amorphous Carbon Layer (ACL)”; 30[Wingdings font/0xE0]32];
etching the layer 30/20 through the opening O [Figs. 7-9];
etching and removing the first patterned structure 42 and the second patterned structure 72 selectively to the layer 32/22 [Fig. 8, para. 0087]; and
etching and removing the structure 64/32 [Fig. 9; para. 0087; para. 0095].
As to claim 2, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the first patterned structure 42 comprises a first pair of lines and the second patterned structure 72 comprises a second pair of lines [Fig. 6].
As to claim 3, Kim discloses the method of claim 2, wherein the first pair of lines intersects the second pair of lines at an angle between 30 and 90 degrees [Fig. 6, para. 0071; para. 0113].
As to claim 4, Kim discloses the method of claim 2, wherein etching the first pair of lines and the second pair of lines comprises:
etching the first pair of lines and the second pair of lines at a substantially same rate to expose a top surface of the layer 20 [Figs. 7-8, para. 0087-88]
As to claim 5, Kim discloses the method of claim 4, wherein etching the first pair of lines and the second pair of lines further comprises:
etching to form pillars 32 of the first pair of lines at the intersections [Figs. 7-8, para. 0086-88]; and
further etching and removing the pillars 32 selectively to the layer 20 to produce a substantially planar top surface of the layer 20 [Fig. 9, para. 0092-95].
As to claim 10, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the layer 20 comprises a fourth material comprising one of carbon, SiO2, SiN, SiCN, poly Si, SiOCH, or low k interlayer dielectric material [para. 0036, “the lower layer 20 may comprise silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride and/or low-k material”; para. 0037, “the lower layer 20 may comprise a single layer or multi-layer comprised of a plurality of stacked layers”], and wherein the fourth material is different from the third material 32 [para. 0038, “first sacrificial layer 30 may be an Amorphous Carbon Layer (ACL)”; 30[Wingdings font/0xE0]32];
As to claim 11, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the first material 40 comprises silicon oxide, silicon oxynitride, silicon carbide, silicon nitride, polysilicon or amorphous silicon [para. 0042-43, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”], wherein the second material 70 comprises silicon oxide, silicon oxynitride, silicon carbide, silicon nitride, polysilicon or amorphous silicon, and wherein the third material comprises carbon, SiCN, SiON, Si, SiO2, SiN, or SiC [para. 0064-66, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”].
As to claim 13, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, wherein etching the first patterned structure 42 and the second patterned structure 72 comprises utilizing CF4, CHxFy, C4F8, C4F6, Ar, and/or O2 [para. 0078, “O2 gas”].
As to claim 14, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the first patterned structure comprises a first plurality of substantially parallel lines and the second patterned structure comprises a second plurality of substantially parallel lines, and wherein the first plurality of substantially parallel lines intersects the second plurality of substantially parallel lines at an angle between 30 and 90 degrees to form a plurality of openings [Fig. 7, para. 0046, 0071].
As to claim 15, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, wherein etching and removing the first patterned structure 42 and the second patterned structure 72 form a plurality of openings having a substantially same size [para. 0092, 0094, Fig. 9].
As to claim 16, Kim discloses the method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of openings has a width between 3 nm and 60 nm [para. 0093, “about 10 nm to about 40 nm”, which anticipates the claimed range because every value of the disclosed range is within the claimed range].
As to claim 17, Kim discloses a method of planarizing, the method comprising:
receiving a substrate comprising a mask 42/72 formed above a patterned layer 32/22, wherein the mask comprises:
a first patterned structure 42 comprising at least a first material 40 [para. 0042-43, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”];
a second patterned structure 72 comprising at least a second material 70 above the first patterned structure 42 [para. 0064-66, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”], wherein portions of the second patterned structure intersect the first patterned structure to form intersections and at least an opening O [Figs. 6-7];
a structure 64/32 comprising a third material vertically between portions of the second patterned structure and the patterned layer 32/22, wherein the third material 64/32 is different from the first material or the second material [para. 0053, “coating 60… SOG (Spin On Glass), ARC (Anti-Reflecting Coating layer), photo resist, and carbon mask layer may be used”; 60[Wingdings font/0xE0]62[Wingdings font/0xE0]64; para. 0038, “first sacrificial layer 30 may be an Amorphous Carbon Layer (ACL)”; 30[Wingdings font/0xE0]32]; and
planarizing the first patterned structure 42 and the second patterned structure 72 [Figs. 5-7; para. 0078].
As to claim 18, Kim discloses the method of claim 17, wherein the first patterned structure comprises a first pair of lines and the second patterned structure comprises a second pair of lines [Figs. 5-6], and wherein planarizing the first patterned structure and the second patterned structure comprises etching the first pair of lines and the second pair of lines [Figs. 5-8, para. 0078, para. 0086-88].
As to claim 19, Kim discloses the method of claim 18, wherein etching the first pair of lines and the second pair of lines comprises etching at a substantially same rate to expose a top surface of the patterned layer [Figs. 5-8, para. 0086-88].
As to claim 20, discloses the method of claim 18, wherein etching the first pair of lines and the second pair of lines further comprises:
etching to form pillars 32 of the first pair of lines at the intersections [Figs. 7-8, para. 0086-88]; and
further etching and removing the pillars 32 selectively to the patterned layer 20 to produce a substantially planar top surface of the patterned layer [Fig. 9, para. 0092-95].
As to claim 21 Kim discloses a method of planarizing, the method comprising:
placing a mask 42/72 formed above a stack of two or more layers 30 & 20 [para. 0036, “the lower layer 20 may comprise silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride and/or low-k material”; para. 0037, “the lower layer 20 may comprise a single layer or multi-layer comprised of a plurality of stacked layers”] into an etch chamber [para. 0048, “etching apparatus”], wherein the mask comprises:
a first patterned layer 42 comprising a first material 40 [para. 0042-43, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”];
a second patterned layer 72 comprising a second material 70 above the first patterned layer 42 [para. 0064-66, “SiON, SiO.sub.2, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, SiCN, polysilicon”], wherein portions of the second patterned layer intersect the second patterned layer to form intersections and at least an opening O [Fig. 6]; and
a third material 60 vertically between the portions of the second patterned layer 72 and the stack of two or more layers 30 & 20, wherein the third material 60 is different from the first material 40 or the second material 70 [para. 0053, “coating 60… SOG (Spin On Glass), ARC (Anti-Reflecting Coating layer), photo resist, and carbon mask layer may be used”; 60[Wingdings font/0xE0]62[Wingdings font/0xE0]64];
etching a first layer 30 of the stack of two or more layers through the opening and exposing a top surface of a second layer below the first layer [Fig. 7, para. 0082-85]; and
etching and removing the first patterned layer 42 and the second patterned layer 72 selectively to the first layer 20 and the top surface of the second layer 30 [Fig. 7-8, para. 0087, “may be selectively removed”].
As to claim 22, Kim discloses the method of claim 21 further comprises etching and removing the third material 60 while etching the second layer of the stack of two or more layers [para. 0095].
As to claim 23, Kim discloses the method of claim 21, wherein the third material includes a first carbon containing material and the first layer of the stack of two or more layers includes a second carbon containing material [para. 0089].
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 6-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. (US 20120040528 A1), as applied to claims 1-5, 10-11, and 13-23 above.
As to claim 6, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the layer 30/20 is a first layer, wherein the first patterned structure 42 comprises a first dual layer stack comprising:
a second layer on the first layer 20, the second layer comprising at least silicon [para. 0036, “the lower layer 20 may comprise silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride and/or low-k material”; para. 0037, “the lower layer 20 may comprise a single layer or multi-layer comprised of a plurality of stacked layers”]; and
a first dielectric on the second layer, the first dielectric comprising at least silicon [Id.].
Here, Kim teaches that layer 20 may comprise a plurality of stacked layers [para. 0036-37], but fails to explicitly disclose an embodiment with that configuration, and necessarily comprising at least silicon.
However, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate a plurality of stacked layers including the listed silicon materials, of Kim, within the substrate layer 20, in order to achieve a desired pattern stacked layer, as taught by Kim [para. 0036-37].
As to claim 7, Kim discloses the method of claim 6, wherein the second patterned structure 72 comprises a second dual layer stack comprising:
a third layer 64 on the first dielectric comprising at least silicon [para. 0036-37; Fig. 5] and
a second dielectric 82 on the third layer 64, the second dielectric comprising at least silicon [para. 0064].
Kim fails to explicitly disclose: wherein the first dielectric comprises a thickness between 5 nm and 55 nm, and wherein the second dielectric comprises a thickness between 5 nm and 55 nm.
However, one of ordinary skill in the art could readily have conceived of a configuration where the first and second dielectric layers have a thickness between 5 nm and 55 nm, as is conventional in the art to achieve a desired patterned product.
As to claim 8, Kim discloses the method of claim 7, wherein the first patterned structure 42 and the second patterned structure 72 comprise a same material [para. 0087].
Claims 12 and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. (US 20120040528 A1), as applied to claims 1-5, 10-11, and 13-23 above, in view of Valdivia et al. (US 20210020441 A1).
As to claim 12, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, but fails to explicitly disclose:
wherein etching the layer 20 comprises utilizing a plasma etch process, and wherein the plasma etch process utilizes halogen containing gas CHx-, Br-, Clx-, or I- .
However, Valdivia discloses a method for etching a stack beneath a mask pattern [Abstract], comprising a plasma etching gas comprising CxHyFz and an additional gas of at least one of O2, SO2, COS, CH3F, CH2F2, CHF3, CF4, N2, Ar, He, Cl2, HBr and Kr are flowed into the process chamber [para. 0025-27; Fig. 2A-2F].
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method of etching an underlying layer or stack of silicon-containing materials using a mask pattern , of Kim, to include the plasma etching gases for etching a silicon-containing layer, of Valdivia, because they are conventional etching gases for that purpose, as taught by Valdivia [para. 0025-27; Fig. 2A-2F].
As to claim 24, modified Kim discloses the method of claim 21, wherein etching the first layer of the stack of two or more layers comprises utilizing a plasma etch process [Fig. 7, para. 0082-85], but fails to explicitly disclose:
wherein the plasma etch process further comprises flowing halogen gas comprising one or more of CHx-, Br-, Clx-, or I- at a flow rate between 0.5 sccm and 500 sccm.
However, Valdivia discloses a method for etching a stack beneath a mask pattern [Abstract], comprising a plasma etching gas comprising CxHyFz and an additional gas of at least one of O2, SO2, COS, CH3F, CH2F2, CHF3, CF4, N2, Ar, He, Cl2, HBr and Kr are flowed into the process chamber [para. 0025-27; Fig. 2A-2F].
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method of etching an underlying layer or stack of silicon-containing materials using a mask pattern , of Kim, to include the plasma etching gases for etching a silicon-containing layer, of Valdivia, because they are conventional etching gases for that purpose, as taught by Valdivia [para. 0025-27; Fig. 2A-2F].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 9 is 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
As to claim 9, Kim discloses the method of claim 1, but fails to teach, alone or in combination with other prior art, the feature of:
wherein etching the second patterned structure comprises a first sidewall that is substantially vertical and a second sidewall opposite to the first sidewall that has a substantially curved upper portion, and wherein prior to etching the layer, the method further comprises performing an argon bombardment process to erode the first sidewall to form a curved upper portion.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure: The additionally cited references are cited to show substrate patterning processes including two or more masks used to form a lattice or overlapping structure [Abstracts].
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/CHRISTOPHER REMAVEGE/Examiner, Art Unit 1713
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