" ANK B . DEHN 8- C O _
`
`
`Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys
`
`St Bride's House, 10 Salisbury Square, London acav 8JD
`Telephone: +44 (0)20 7632 7200 Fax: +44 (0)20 7353 8895
`E-mail: mai|@frankbdehn.com Web: www.frankbdehn.com
`
`European Patent Office
`D-80298 Miinchen
`
`Germany
`
`date
`your ref
`
`21 April 2008
`
`ourref 3l.2.87737
`
`BY FACSIMILE
`
`EPO - Munich
`73
`
`23. April 2993
`
`GQNHRMAWQN
`GF FAX
`
`Dear Sirs
`
`European Patent Application No. 03779387.4 (1560943)
`Regional Phase of PCT Application PCT/US2003/034226
`Zond, Inc.
`
`In response to the Examination Report dated 10 October 2007, we enclose herewith amended
`pages 2, 2a, 2b and 30-32 to replace pages 2 and 30-32 currently on file. To aid the Examiner,
`we also enclose a draft copy of those pages in which the changes made to the text can be clearly
`seen.
`
`The Examiner will note that a new independent apparatus claim 1 is provided, based on claim 1
`of the application as filed and as published in the International phase. A new method claim 14
`has also been included, which corresponds in scope to new claim 1 and is likewise based on
`claim 16 of the application as filed and as published in the International phase. Basis for
`claiming the application of a voltage pulse arranged to increase ionisation in the plasma to cause
`the thermal sputtering response of the target to become non—linear and increase significantly can
`be found in paragraphs [0140]-[0147] of the International application as filed and as published.
`
`Dependent claims 3, 4, 7, 9 and 16 have been deleted and the remaining claims have been
`renumbered. New dependent claim 13 is based on claim 2 of the application as filed.
`
`We note the Examiner's novelty objection and will now set out how new claims 1 and 14 are
`distinguished over D1.
`
`New claims 1 and 14 are directed to a sputtering source and method that achieves a high
`deposition rate and in which an ionisation source produces a plasma close to a cathode assembly
`which includes the sputtering target and is positioned adjacent the anode. A power supply then
`applies a voltage pulse between the anode and cathode which has a rise time and amplitude to
`increase the degree of ionisation in the plasma so that, when the ions are impacted on the
`
`John P Tothill MA '
`Derek P Matthews 35: PhD °
`Partners
`Christopher P Pett MA " Hanna Dzieglewska BSc PhD -' Robert P Jackson as: LLM °
`Kerry J Tomlinson MA 0
`Roberto Calamita MA 0-
`Elizabeth JonesMSc PhD ~
`Michael J Burl‘-'rMA "
`David Leckey 85: "
`Louise A Golding MA ~
`Julian Cockbain MA DPhiI " Alison J Hague MA "
`Rebecca Gardner BSc '
`Christopher R Davies es: 0' Philip D Towler MA 0'
`Philip M Jeffrey BSc PhD 0
`Alexander J Piésold as: 0' Andrea M Hughes aEng LLM *' Annabel R Beacham MA DPhil *
`
`Associates
`Adrian Samuels MA '
`Jason Stevens aA 0
`Neil Campbell SA 0
`Philip M Webber MA PhD 0 Joseph M Letang LLB -
`Matthew Hall BA MS: -
`Deborah J Owen MA PhD -
`Elaine P Days; as: '
`Katherine F Mabey MA 0
`Christopher R Goddard MA pm o
`Catherine L Booth esc PhD 0
`
`Susannah Neath BS: '
`Clare L Stoneman BA '
`Anna Leathley MBiochem PhD 0
`Andrew Chiva Msci ~
`Jodie Rutherford 35: PhD '
`
`‘UK Chartered Patent Attorney, European Patent Attorney ‘UK Registered Trade Mark Attorney, European Trade Mark Attorney
`Offices in London Munich Brighton Oxford
`
`C'1 2
`V‘ Zond! I
`Page 1 o
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`TSMC-1218
`TSMC v. Zond, Inc.
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