Ex Parte Lin

Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences

Feb 26, 2007

10356960 (B.P.A.I. Feb. 26, 2007)

The opinion in support of the decision being entered today was not written
for publication and is not binding precedent of the Board.

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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BEFORE THE BOARD OF PATENT APPEALS
AND INTERFERENCES
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Ex parte CHINGFU LIN
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Appeal 2007-0479
Application 10/356,960
Technology Center 2814
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Decided: February 26, 2007
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Before EDWARD C. KIMLIN, CHARLES F. WARREN, and
JEFFREY T. SMITH, Administrative Patent Judges.

KIMLIN, Administrative Patent Judge.

DECISION ON APPEAL
This is an appeal from the final rejection of claims 1-12. Claim 1 is
illustrative:
1. A method for cleaning exposed copper surfaces in a process for
making electronic components consisting essentially of the following
sequence the steps of:

providing an integrated circuit structure which is in the process of
being fabricated into a finished electronic component by etching a dielectric
Appeal 2007-0479
Application 10/356,960

layer of the component with an etchant to form an opening having an
exposed copper surface with copper oxide on the surface thereof;

contacting the exposed copper surface of the opening of the etched
component with a cleaning composition different from the etchant consisting
essentially of a nitrogen containing material and an oxygen containing
material to clean the copper surface with a lower dielectric constant shift of
the dielectric compared to a conventional argon cleaning method;

forming a barrier layer on sidewalls and the exposed copper surface in
the cleaned opening;

filling the opening with copper; and

continuing the process for making the integrated circuit device.

The Examiner relies upon the following reference in the rejection of
the appealed claims:
Chen US 6,352,938 B2 Mar. 5, 2002
Appellant's claimed invention is directed to a method for cleaning
exposed copper surfaces in integrated circuit structures. The method
comprises, inter alia, contacting the exposed copper surface with a cleaning
composition that consists essentially of a nitrogen containing material and an
oxygen containing material (claim 1), or with a nitrogen containing material,
an oxygen containing material, and a hydrogen containing material (claim
7). It can be seen that both independent claims 1 and 7 require that the
cleaning composition comprises an oxygen containing material.
Appealed claims 1-12 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(e) as
being anticipated by Chen.
We have thoroughly reviewed the respective positions advanced by
Appellant and the Examiner. In so doing, we find that the Examiner has
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Appeal 2007-0479
Application 10/356,960

failed to establish a prima facie case of anticipation for the claimed subject
matter. Accordingly, we will not sustain the Examiner's rejection.
Chen expressly discloses that undesirable copper oxide is removed
from the copper layer by using a gaseous composition of N2H2 (see Abstract
and col. 4, ll. 33 et. seq.). Hence, Chen does not describe a cleaning
composition comprising an oxygen containing material within the meaning
of § 102. Consequently, the Examiner has committed reversible error in
stating that the method of Chen includes contacting the copper surface "with
a cleaning composition different from the etchant consisting essentially of a
nitrogen containing material (N2H2) and an oxygen containing material (O2)
to clean the copper surface…(sentence bridging pages 3 and 4 of Answer).
We find no such disclosure in Chen and the Examiner, significantly, has not
cited any particular disclosure in the reference to support this statement.
Accordingly, the Examiner has failed to establish a prima facie case of
anticipation.
Also, although we do not find the claim language "consisting
essentially of " to be at issue on this appeal, we must point out to the
Examiner that, contrary to the statement made at page 7 of the Answer, the
language "comprising" and "consistently essentially of" are not equivalent
in patent parlance. The term "comprising" is open-ended and includes other
materials not specifically recited in the claims. On the other hand,
"consisting essentially of" excludes components that materially affect the
basic nature of the claimed composition. See In re DeLajarte, 337 F.2d 870,
873-74, 143 USPQ 256, 258 (CCPA 1964), and MPEP § 2111.03.

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Appeal 2007-0479
Application 10/356,960

Upon return of this application to the Examiner, the Examiner should
consider a rejection of the appealed claims under 35 U.S.C. § 103 over
Chen. In particular, the Examiner should consider the obviousness of
including the oxygen in Chen's gaseous mixture for removing photoresist in
the gaseous composition for removing copper oxygen.
In conclusion, based on the foregoing, we are constrained to reverse
the Examiner's rejection.
REVERSED

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