Appeal No. 2005-0188
Application No. 09/949,541
providing a structure with greater flexibility by varying the
dopant concentration of the polysilicon layer (Singh; Summary of
the Invention).”
As indicated supra, the trimming resistor in Spraggins is
trimmed by a heating structure located adjacent to the trimming
resistor structure. In Singh, the trimming resistor is trimmed
by passing a heating current directly through the doped
polysilicon resistor layer (section 0028). Singh does not
provide a separate heating structure to aid in the trimming of
the resistor.
Appellants argue (supplemental brief, pages 4 and 5) that
Spraggins and Singh use completely different methods of resistor
trimming (i.e., heating of a separate heating structure in
Spraggins as opposed to a current that passes directly through
the resistor structure in Singh), that the applied references
neither teach nor would have suggested to one of ordinary skill
in the art to interchangeably use the two different resistor
trimming methods and that the examiner has not explained how and
why the skilled artisan would have replaced the bi-layer resistor
structure of an intrinsic polysilicon layer and a tungsten
silicide layer in Spraggins with a doped polysilicon layer
disclosed by Singh.
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