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 .
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 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.
In addressing the rejection ground, each claim may not have been separately discussed to the extent the claimed features are the same as or similar to the previously-discussed features; the previous discussion is construed to apply for the other claims in the same or similar way.
In the office action, “/” should be read as and/or as generally understood. For example, “A/B” means A and B, or A or B.
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 1, 6-9, and 11-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Murata et al. (US 2005/0016838) in view of Adachi et al. (US 2020/0279720).
Regarding claim 1, Murata discloses an ion source [e.g. 1 fig. 1/2A] comprising: a plasma chamber [e.g. 2]; three or more extraction electrodes [e.g. 20, 30, 40, 50] that extract an ion beam from the plasma chamber in an extraction direction, the three or more extraction electrodes including a first electrode [e.g. 20] , a second electrode [e.g. 30] and a third electrode [e.g. 40] in order from the plasma chamber in the extraction direction; and a controller [e.g. the circuit controlling the connections/potentials of power-supply voltages A, B, C] configured to set voltage potentials of the three or more electrodes, wherein, when the third electrode is cleaned, the controller controls the voltage potential [e.g. -2 kv] of the third electrode to be smaller than the voltage potentials of remaining electrodes of the three or more extraction electrodes [see paras. 0049-0050, 0072].
Adachi discloses an electrode driver [e.g. 5 fig. 1] configured to move extraction electrodes (including the suppression electrode) in the extraction direction of the ion beam [see at least paras. 0009-0010, 0024], when the suppression electrode is cleaned, the electrode driver moves the extraction electrodes along the extraction direction of the ion beam [see at least paras. 0009-0010, 0024].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device disclosed by Murata in accordance with the teaching of Adachi regarding a suppression electrode in order to prevent an abnormal electrical discharge between the plasma chamber and the electrodes [para. 0008].
Regarding claim 6, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 1, wherein the three or more extraction electrodes include four electrodes [e.g. 1 fig. 1/2A Murata] in the extraction direction.
Regarding claim 7, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 6, wherein the electrode driver moves the third electrode and a fourth electrode that is downstream of the third electrode together along the extraction direction of the ion beam [e.g. 5 fig. 1 Adachi].
Regarding claim 8, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 1, wherein the three or more extraction electrodes each have three slits [see at least fig. 1 Murata, each has at least 3 slits].
Regarding claim 9, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 8, wherein the three slits are formed by two rods [e.g. the two rods at the most left/right side see at least fig. 1 Murata].
Regarding claim 11, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 1, wherein, when the third electrode is cleaned, after the electrode driver moves the third electrode alone the extraction direction of the ion beam, the electrode driver moves the third electrode in a crossing direction that crosses the extraction direction [see at least figs. 3A-3C, paras. 0053-0058 Adachi].
Regarding claim 12, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 11, wherein the electrode driver moves the third electrode reciprocally in the crossing direction during cleaning of the third electrode [see at least figs. 3A-3C, paras. 0053-0058 Adachi].
Regarding claim 13, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 1, wherein the electrode driver moves the third electrode in the extraction direction of the ion beam before start cleaning of the third electrode [see at least paras. 0009-0010, 0020, 0024, fig. 1 Adachi].
Regarding claim 14, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 1, wherein, when the third electrode is cleaned, the electrode driver rotates the third electrode around an axis corresponding to the extraction direction or around an axis corresponding to a direction perpendicular to the extraction direction [see at least paras. 0023, 0031, fig. 1 Adachi].
Regarding claim 15, the combination discloses an ion source comprising: a plasma chamber; three or more extraction electrodes that extract an ion beam from the plasma chamber in an extraction direction, the three or more extraction electrodes including a first electrode, a second electrode and a third electrode in order from the plasma chamber in the extraction direction; an electrode driver configured to move a portion of three or more extraction electrodes, and a controller configured to set voltage potentials of the three or more extraction electrodes, wherein, when the third electrode is cleaned, the electrode driver increases a distance between the second electrode and the third electrode in the extraction direction of the ion beam [see at least abstract, para. 0020 Adachi], and the controller controls the voltage potential of the third electrode to be smaller than the voltage potentials of remaining electrodes of the three or more extraction electrodes. Please see rejection of claim 1.
Claim 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Murata et al. (US 2005/0016838) in view of Adachi et al. (US 2020/0279720) and Kurunczi et al. (US 2014/0041684).
Regarding claim 10, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 1. The combination does not disclose the ion beam is a ribbon beam. However, Kurunczi disclose the ion beam is a ribbon beam [para. 0021], such that the combination discloses the ion beam is a ribbon beam having a substantially rectangular cross section. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device disclosed by Murata and Adachi in accordance with the teaching of Kurunczi regarding an ion beam in order to utilize ribbon beam for an ion source.
Claims 4-5 and 18-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Murata et al. (US 2005/0016838) in view of Adachi et al. (US 2020/0279720) and Nissin Ion Equipment Co., Ltd. (hereinafter Nissin, JP 2013-12495, see IDS).
Regarding claim 4, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 1, except wherein, when cleaning the second electrode [see at least paras. 0012-0014], the electrode driver maintains a distance [the same distance during cleaning, see at least figs. 1-5] between the second electrode and the third electrode in the extraction direction of the ion beam, and the controller is configured to set a voltage potential of the second electrode to be smaller than voltage potentials of remaining electrodes of the three or more extraction electrodes. However, Nissin discloses when cleaning the second electrode [see at least paras. 0012-0014], the electrode driver maintains a distance [the same distance during cleaning] between the second electrode and the third electrode in the extraction direction of the ion beam, and the controller is configured to set a voltage potential of the second electrode to be smaller than voltage potentials of remaining electrodes of the three or more extraction electrodes [see at least paras. 0012-0014, 0019 Nissin; Adachi disclose to apply a negative voltage to the electrode when cleaning the electrode, see at least paras. 0044, 0052]. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device disclosed by Murata and Adachi in accordance with the teaching of Nissin regarding cleaning electrodes in order to remove deposits built up on the surfaces of electrodes [para. 0001].
Regarding claim 5, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 4, wherein the controller controls the ion source to clean the third electrode after cleaning the second electrode [ see at least paras. 0009-0012 Nissin].
Regarding claim 18, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 15/4, wherein, when cleaning the second electrode, the electrode driver maintains a distance between the second electrode and the third electrode in the extraction direction of the ion beam, and the controller is configured to set a voltage potential of the second electrode to be smaller than voltage potentials of remaining electrodes of the three or more extraction electrodes. See rejection of claim 4.
Regarding claim 19, the combination discloses the ion source according to claim 17, wherein the controller controls the ion source to clean the third electrode after cleaning the second electrode.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-3 and 16-17 are 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.
Conclusion
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/PATRICK C CHEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2842