Appeal No. 96-1271
Application No. 08/190,388
or due to the silicide reaction. It is only appellant who
teaches the use of specific metal silicides, e.g., titanium
silicide, as a layer over a base contact impurity region of
such high impurity concentration that the flow of impurities
out of the base contact impurity region during the titanium
silicide formation does not result in an impurity
concentration in the base contact impurity region of such a
low concentration that base contact resistance would increase.
While titanium silicides, for example, were well known,
contrary to the examiner’s position, we find no reason that
would have led the artisan to employ the titanium silicide
layer of Welch in place of the palladium/platinum silicide
layer of Lechaton.
We also note that the examiner’s attempt, at page 6 of
the answer, to somehow discount the specific claim limitation
of the particular group of metal silicide layer used, based on
the apparent reasoning that the instant claims are product-by-
process claims, is not well founded. Quite clearly, the
recited metal silicide layer, consisting of a certain group of
metal silicides, is a structural limitation and cannot be
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