Appeal No. 2004-0582
Application No. 09/037,945
Appellants’ invention relates to a streamlined field isolation process. An
understanding of the invention can be derived from a reading of exemplary claim 1,
which is reproduced below.
1. A process of forming an integrated circuit, comprising:
growing a silicon dioxide field isolation region on a semiconductor
wafer without forming silicon nitride inclusions in said field isolation region
exclusively by means of a hydrogen-free oxidant at a pressure less than
about 30 atm; and
forming a gate oxide without a prior sacrificial oxidation.
The prior art of record relied upon by the examiner in rejecting the appealed
claims is as follows:
Marshall et al. (Marshall), “Dry Pressure Local Oxidation of Silicon For IC Isolation,”
Reprinted from the Journal of the Electrochemical Society, Vol. 122, No. 19, pp.
1411-1412 (Oct. 1975)
Cattus et al. (Cattus) DD 266 885 A1 Apr. 12, 1989
(Referenced previously as German[y] ’885 reference)
Claims 1, 2, 41, 14, and 17 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being
unpatentable over Cattus. Claims 3, 8, 9, 11, 12, and 16 stand rejected under
35 U.S.C. § 103 as being unpatentable over Cattus in view of Marshall.
Rather than reiterate the conflicting viewpoints advanced by the examiner and
appellants regarding the above-noted rejections, we make reference to the examiner's
1 We note that claim 4 depends from claim 3 which is rejected using the additional teachings of
Marshall.
2
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