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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Election/Restriction
Claims 18-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected group, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 4/30/2026.
Applicant’s election without traverse of group I, claims 1-17 in the reply filed on 4/30/2026 is acknowledged.
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.
Claim(s) 1-8, 10-13, 15, and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 and a2 as being anticipated by Kim (US Pub No. 2021/0175450)
Regarding Claim 1, Kim et al. teaches a preparation method of a perovskite film layer [Fig. 4-14, 0171], comprising:
providing a substrate [111, 112, 114, and 121, Fig. 9, 0056, 0089], wherein the substrate comprises a base [111, Fig. 9, 0056] and a transport layer [114, Fig. 9, 0170] disposed on the base [111, Fig. 9, 0056];
depositing a perovskite reaction material layer [122-2, Fig. 11, 0176] on a side of the transport layer [114, Fig. 9, 0170] facing away from the base [111, Fig. 9, 0056] to obtain an intermediate product [122 and layers below 122 are the intermediate product, Fig. 3 and Fig. 11]; and placing the intermediate product in a solvent atmosphere for reaction [0186];
wherein the method further comprising:
depositing a first passivation precursor layer [112-1, Fig. 11, 0158] before depositing the perovskite reaction material layer [122-2, Fig. 11, 0183].
Regarding Claim 2, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the transport layer comprises an electron transport layer or a hole transport layer [0170].
Regarding Claim 3, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein: a material of the electron transport layer comprises at least one of TiO₂, SnO₂, and ZnO [0170];
Regarding Claim 4, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the first passivation precursor layer, the perovskite reaction material layer, and/or the second passivation precursor layer are deposited by a vapor deposition method [Fig. 3, 0114].
Regarding Claim 5, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the solvent atmosphere comprises a polar solvent [0139].
Regarding Claim 6, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the solvent atmosphere comprises at least one of vapor phases of N,N-dimethylformamide (N,N-Dimethylformamide, DMF), dimethyl sulfoxide (Dimethyl sulfoxide, DMSO), N-methylpyrrolidone (N-Methylpyrrolidone, NMP), dimethylacetamide (Dimethylacetamide, DMAC), 1,4-butyrolactone (1,4-Butyrolactone,GBL), and 1,3-dimethyl-2-imidazolidinone (1,3-Dimethyl-2-imidazolidinone, DMI) [0139].
Regarding Claim 7, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the solvent atmosphere is provided by a semi-closed container or a gas flow environment [0138-0139].
Regarding Claim 8, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein a solvent is added to the semi-closed container, and the semi-closed container is heated to form a solvent atmosphere [0138-0139].
Regarding Claim 10, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein a material of the first passivation precursor layer and a material of the second passivation precursor layer are selected from at least one of an organic halide and a metal halide, and the material of the first passivation precursor layer is different from the material of the second passivation precursor layer [0183, 122-2 is the organic halide layer].
Regarding Claim 11, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the organic halide comprises at least one of benzylamine, phenylethylamine, diphenylamine, spermine, naphthylamine, and halogenated derivatives thereof [0183]
Regarding Claim 12, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the metal halide comprises halides of trivalent metal elements in the same period as Pb and Sn [0183].
Regarding Claim 13, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein the perovskite reaction material layer comprises BX₂ and AX, wherein B comprises at least one of Sn and Pb, A comprises at least one of Cs, FA, and MA, X comprises at least one of CI, Br, and I, the organic halide is close to a side of the BX₂, and the metal halide is close to a side of the AX [0101, 0183].
Regarding Claim 15, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein a thickness of the second passivation precursor layer is 5-20 nm [see rejection of claim 1, the second passivation precursor layer is not required in claim 1].
Regarding Claim 17, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein a conductive layer [112-2, Fig. 9, 0056] is provided between the base [111, Fig. 9, 0056] and the transport layer [114, Fig. 9, 0170].
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.
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.
Claim(s) 9, 14, and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim (US Pub No. 2021/0175450)
Regarding Claim 9, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. is silent on wherein a concentration of the solvent atmosphere is 2-20 mg/m³.
As the cost of construction and efficiency of operation are variables that can be modified, among others, by adjusting the parameters of the deposition method, with said construction cost and operating efficiency both changing as the parameters of the deposition method are changed, the precise parameters of the deposition method would have been considered a result effective variable by one having ordinary skill in the art before the filing of the invention. As such, without showing unexpected results, the claimed “wherein a concentration of the solvent atmosphere is 2-20 mg/m³.” cannot be considered critical. Accordingly, one of ordinary skill in the art before the filing of the invention would have optimized, by routine experimentation, the parameters of the deposition method to obtain the desired balance between the construction cost and the operation efficiency (In re Boesch, 617 F.2d. 272, 205 USPQ 215 (CCPA 1980)), since it has been held that where the general conditions of the claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. (In re Aller, 105 USPQ 223).
Regarding Claim 14, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein a thickness of the first passivation precursor layer is 10 to 200 nm overlapping the claimed 5-20 nm [0019].
In the case where the claimed ranges “overlap or lie inside ranges disclosed by the prior art” a prima facie case of obviousness exists. In re Wertheim, 541 F.2d 257, 191 USPQ 90 (CCPA 1976); In re Woodruff, 919 F.2d 1575, 16 USPQ2d 1934 (Fed. Cir. 1990). MPEP §2144.05.
Regarding Claim 16, Kim et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Kim et al. teaches wherein a thickness of the perovskite reaction material layer overlapping the claimed 400-800 nm [0019, 0025]
In the case where the claimed ranges “overlap or lie inside ranges disclosed by the prior art” a prima facie case of obviousness exists. In re Wertheim, 541 F.2d 257, 191 USPQ 90 (CCPA 1976); In re Woodruff, 919 F.2d 1575, 16 USPQ2d 1934 (Fed. Cir. 1990). MPEP §2144.05.
Conclusion
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/MICHAEL Y SUN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1728
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