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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 01/30/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 1, 4, and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Canoglu et al. (2023/0113820).
Regarding claim 1, Canoglu discloses a phase shifter (Figure 1, 100, tunable solid-state laser device) comprising: a substrate (114, silicon substrate); an optical waveguide (124, coupling waveguide portion) disposed in a vertical direction with respect to the substrate (Figure 1 depicts 124, coupling waveguide portion, is disposed in a vertical direction with respect to the left hand side of 114, silicon substrate); a first temperature measuring element (134, first ring-temperature sensor) and a second temperature measuring element (136, second ring-temperature sensor) disposed in a horizontal direction with respect to the optical waveguide (Figure 1 depicts 134, first ring-temperature sensor, and 136, second ring-temperature sensor, are disposed on either side of 124, coupling waveguide portion, the sides are interpreted as being in a horizontal direction), and disposed to sandwich the optical waveguide between the first temperature measuring element and the second temperature measuring element (Figure 1); and a heating element (130, first heater) disposed in the vertical direction with respect to the optical waveguide, the first temperature measuring element, and the second temperature measuring element (Figure 1 depicts 130, first heater, is disposed in a vertical direction with respect to the "U" portion of 124, coupling waveguide portion, 134, first ring-temperature sensor, and 136, second ring-temperature sensor).
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Figure A: Annotated Figure 1 of Canoglu et al.
Regarding claim 4, Canoglu discloses the phase shifter according to claim 1, wherein one end of the first temperature measuring element is connected to one end of the second temperature measuring element (Examiner interprets 134, first ring-temperature sensor, and 136, second ring-temperature sensor, to be indirectly connected to each other).
Regarding claim 5, Canoglu discloses a wavelength selector comprising: the phase shifter according to claim 1 (at least [0041, 0043, 0113]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2 and 3 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the prior art fails to teach the limitations of claims 2 and 3, along with the structural limitations positively recited in claim 1, in a manner that would be appropriate under 35 U.S.C. 102 or 103. Regarding claim 2, the prior art fails to teach the specific configuration of the elements. Regarding claim 3, although Canoglu teaches the phase shifter according to claim 1, wherein the optical waveguide is made of silicon (at least [0043, 0053, 0064, 0070]), the prior art fails to teach the first temperature measuring element and the second temperature measuring element are made of salicide.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Roth (2020/0209655), Guzzon (10,571,723), Celo (2017/0315424), Zhang (2016/0124251), Creazzo (2013/0235890), Carothers (2010/0054653), Chu (7,583,879), Yan (2009/0087138), Hu (2008/0075132), McDonald (2007/0230855), Deacon (6,393,185), Imoto (7,970,713) disclose relevant optical devices.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BALRAM T PARBADIA whose telephone number is (571)270-0602. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Monday - Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Bumsuk Won can be reached at (571) 272-2713. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BALRAM T PARBADIA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2872
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