Appeal No. 2001-2143
Application No. 09/093,248
but that the thickness may vary depending upon the desired current handling limits and
operating environment. As far as the actual assembly, it would appear that the skilled
artisan would know how to attach a metal strip to a semiconductor material as contact
leads have been so connected for many years prior to the instant invention. In any
event, the examiner has not given any credible reason why the artisan would not have
known how to join a metal conductor to a semiconductor material.
The examiner also questions whether there is material between the conductor
strips. Since this is not directed to any claimed feature, the inquiry would appear to be
irrelevant.
The examiner further questions whether there would be any pn junction if the
anode or cathode comprised the strips and the strips are a metal such as copper. The
inquiry does not appear reasonable in view of Figures 2A-2C of the drawings since the
strips are attached either to the p-type material or to the n-type material, or even to both
materials. It does not appear that this affects the p-n junction in any way.
Since the examiner’s concerns do not, in our view, raise a reasonable challenge
to the sufficiency of disclosure of the instant claimed invention, we will not sustain the
rejection of claims 18-33 under 35 U.S.C. § 112, first paragraph, based on
nonenablement. Because we do not even find a reasonable basis for challenging the
sufficiency of the disclosure, we find no need to analyze the declaration of Dr. Ching-
Tang Wang.
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