Notice of Aiiowabiiity
`
`Application No.
`14/510,959
`E:gg‘|:“:;CCORMACK
`
`Applicantisl
`SMITH, DONALD K.
`;g:3:’""
`,’§§;2,‘§;';’;‘uL,[‘“°“‘°"°
`No
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`Page 1
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`-- The MAii_iNG DA TE of this communication appears on the cover sheet with the correspondence address--
`All claims being allowable, PROSECUTION ON THE MERITS IS {OR REMAINS) CLOSED in this application.
`If not included
`herewith (or previously mailed), a Notice of Allowance (PTOL-85) or other appropriate communication will be mailed in due course. THIS
`NOTICE OF ALLOWABILITY IS NOT A GRANT OF PATENT RIGHTS. This application is subject to withdrawal from issue at the initiative
`of the Office or upon petition by the applicant. See 37 CFR 1.313 and MPEP 1308.
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`1. E This communication is responsive to 12/17/2014.
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`D A declaration(sliaffidavitls) under 37 CFR 1.130(b) wasiwere filed on
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`2. [I An election was made by the applicant in response to a restriction requirement set forth during the interview on
`requirement and election have been incorporated into this action.
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`3. E The allowed claimls) isiare 1-3 5-9 12 15-22 and 24-36. As a result of the allowed c|aim(s). you may be eligible to benefit from the
`Patent Prosecution Highway program at a participating intellectual property office for the corresponding application. For more
`information, please see htt ‘:iiww\rv.us to.‘ ovi atentsiinit events!
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`trii-.'wIex.'s or send an inquiry to PP:-lfeesziback anus to. cv .
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`; the restriction
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`4. D Acknowledgment is made of a claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. § 1 19(a)-(d) or (f).
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`Certified copies:
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`a) D All
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`b} E] Some
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`*c} I:I None of the:
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`1. El Certified copies of the priority documents have been received.
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`2. El Certified copies of the priority documents have been received in Application No. j
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`3. El Copies of the certified copies of the priority documents have been received in this national stage application from the
`International Bureau (PCT Rule 17.2(a)).
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`" Certified copies not received:
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`Applicant has THREE MONTHS FROM THE “MAILING DATE” of this communication to file a reply complying with the requirements
`noted below. Failure to timely comply will result in ABANDONMENT of this application.
`THIS THREE-MONTH PERIOD IS NOT EXTENDABLE.
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`5. El CORRECTED DRAWINGS ( as “replacement sheets”) must be submitted.
`
`El
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`including changes required by the attached Examiner's Amendment 1 Comment or in the Office action of
`Paper No.iMail Date
`Identifying indicia such as the application number (see 37 CFFI 1.84(c)) should be written on the drawings in the front (not the back} of
`each sheet. Replacement sheet(s} should be labeled as such in the header according to 37 CFR 1.121 (d).
`
`6. I:I DEPOSIT OF andior INFORMATION about the deposit of BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL must be submitted. Note the
`attached Examiner's oomment regarding REQUIREMENT FOR THE DEPOSIT OF BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL.
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`Attachment(s)
`1. 8 Notice of References Cited {PTO-892)
`
`2. E Information Disclosure Statements (PTOiSBi08},
`Paper No.iMai| Date 1211912014
`3. D Examiners Comment Regarding Requirement for Deposit
`of Biological Material
`4. El Interview Summary (PTO-413),
`Paper No.iMai| Date
`.
`
`INICOLE lPPOLITOi
`
`Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2881
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`5. El Examiner's AmendmentiComment
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`6.
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`Examiner's Statement of Reasons for Allowance
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`7. El Other
`
`US. Patent and Trademark Office
`PTOL-37 (Rev. 08-13)
`
`Notice of Allowability
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`Part of Paper No.iMaiI Date 20150108
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`ASML 1010
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`ASML 1010
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`

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`Application/Control Number: 14l510,959
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`Page 2
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`Art Unit: 2881
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`1.
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`The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent
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`provisions.
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`DETAILED ACTION
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`Response to Arguments
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`2.
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`Applicants arguments, see pages 10-12, filed 12/'1 772014, with respect to the
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`amendments to claims 1, 15, and 20 have been fully considered and are persuasive.
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`The rejections of these claims have been withdrawn.
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`3.
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`Claims 1-3, 5-9, 12, 15-22, 24-36 are allowed.
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`Allowable Subject Matter
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`Regarding independent claims 1, 15, and 20; lvlanning U.S. PGPUB No.
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`2006l0152128 discloses a lamp with “inner pressure to about 10 or 11 atm... The higher
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`gas pressure essentially contained the expansion of the plasma during operation,
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`confining the arc discharge” [0028] having “A sparker electrode 124 is positioned inside
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`the envelope for generating a preionization of the gas, in order to obtain a more uniform
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`discharge. The discharge across the arc gap can generate lig ht that is reflected by a
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`mirror assembly 126 positioned relative to the arc gap and/or transmitted through the
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`light transmitting window 106” [0004]. The generated light has “a spectrum on the order
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`of about 190 nm to about 4000 nm” [0018]. However, Manning does not disclose at
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`least one substantially continuous laser for providing energy within a wavelength range
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`from about 700 nm to 2000 nm to the ionized gas to sustain a plasma within the
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`chamber to produce a plasma-generated light having wavelengths greater than 50 nm.
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`

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`Application!Control Number: 14r51c,959
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`Page 3
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`Art Unit: 2881
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`Cross et al. U.S. Patent No. 4,780,608 discloses that “Recently, free-standing
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`continuous discharges have been produced by focusing the output of a sufficiently
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`powerful cw-CO2 laser into inert gases, molecular gases and mixtures thereof at
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`atmospheric pressures or above... Although cw-laser radiation can maintain the
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`continuous optical discharge, the output power of such light sources is generally
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`insufficient to initiate the discharge. Consequently, such plasmas can be initiated using
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`conventional electrode sparks or by the spark produced by a focused laser pulse
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`superimposed on the focal volume of the cw-laser beam used to maintain the plasma”
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`[col. 1; lines 30-52]. However, Cross is concerned with producing ions and does not
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`describe that light is produced by the plasma, Cross does not describe a transparent
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`region of the chamber allowing at least a portion of a plasma-generated light to exit the
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`chamber, as claimed in claim 1 (and does not explicitly describe the claimed pressure,
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`laser wavelength, or plasma-generated light wavelength values).
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`One of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention would not have
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`combined Manning and Cross since they belong to different fields of endeavor; namely,
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`Manning uses a plasma to generate light, while Cross uses a plasma to generate ions.
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`Further, if Manning and Cross were combined, the references still fail to disclose at
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`least one substantially continuous laser for providing energy within a wavelength range
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`from about 700 nm to 2000 nm to the ionized gas to sustain a plasma within the
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`chamber to produce a plasma-generated light having wavelengths greater than 50 nm
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`(Cross does not disclose the wavelength of the disclosed laser, and does not disclose
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`that the laser sustains the plasma for producing light, and therefore cannot disclose that
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`

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`Application!Control Number: 147510959
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`Page 4
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`Art Unit: 2881
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`light having wavelengths greater than 50 nm can be produced by a plasma sustained by
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`a laser).
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`The prior art fails to disclose at least one substantially continuous laser for
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`providing energy within a wavelength range from about 700 nm to 2000 nm to an
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`ionized gas to sustain a plasma within a chamber having greater than atmospheric
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`pressure to produce a plasma-generated light having wavelengths greater than 50 nm,
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`as claimed in independent claim 1, with similar limitations in independent claims 15 and
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`20.
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`Regarding dependent claims 2, 3, 5-9, 12, 16-19, 21, 22, and 24-36; these claims
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`are allowable at least for their dependence, either directly or indirectly upon
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`independent claims 1, 15, and 20.
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`Conclusion
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`Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the
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`examiner should be directed to JASON MCCORMACK whose telephone number is
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`(571 )270-1 489. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday — Thursday 7:00am
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`— 3:00pm.
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`If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s
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`supervisor, Robert Kim can be reached on (571)272-2293. The fax phone number for
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`the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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`

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`AppIication!ControI Number: 14f510,959
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`Page 5
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`Art Unit: 2881
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`Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the
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`Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for
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`published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR.
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`Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only.
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`For more information about the PAIR system, see httpzflpair-direct.uspto.gov. Should
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`you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic
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`Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a
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`USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information
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`system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
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`/JASON MCCORMACK/
`
`Examiner, Art Unit 2881
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`XNICOLE IPPOLITOI
`
`Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2881