# MPEP § 2104.01: Barred by Atomic Energy Act

> Federal · Agency guidance · In force

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2104.01

## Section

- **Citation:** MPEP § 2104.01
- **Heading:** Barred by Atomic Energy Act
- **Jurisdiction:** Federal
- **Kind:** Agency guidance
- **Status:** In force
- **Text as of:** August 14, 2026
- **Source:** Compiled text
- **Location:** USPTO MPEP / Chapter 2100 - Patentability / MPEP § 2104.01

## Text

A limitation on what can be patented is imposed by the Atomic Energy Act
of 1954. Section 151(a) (42 U.S.C. 2181(a)) thereof reads in part as follows:
No patent shall hereafter be granted for any invention or discovery
which is useful solely in the utilization of special nuclear material or atomic energy
in an atomic weapon.
The terms “atomic energy” and “special nuclear material” are defined in
Section 11 of the Act (42 U.S.C. 2014).
Sections 151(c) and 151(d) (42 U.S.C. 2181(c) and (d)) set up categories
of pending applications relating to atomic energy that must be brought to the attention
of the Department of Energy. Under
37 CFR 1.14(d)
, applications for
patents which disclose or which appear to disclose, or which purport to disclose,
inventions or discoveries relating to atomic energy are reported to the Department of
Energy and the Department will be given access to such applications, but such reporting
does not constitute a determination that the subject matter of each application so
reported is in fact useful or an invention or discovery or that such application in fact
discloses subject matter in categories specified by the Atomic Energy Act.
All applications received in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office are
screened by Licensing and Review personnel, under
37 CFR 1.14(d)
, in order for the
Director to fulfill his or her responsibilities under section 151(d) (42 U.S.C. 2181(d))
of the Atomic Energy Act. Papers subsequently added must be inspected promptly by the
examiner when received to determine whether the application has been amended to relate
to atomic energy and those so related must be promptly forwarded to Licensing and
Review.
All rejections based upon sections 151(a) (42 U.S.C. 2181(a)), 152 (42
U.S.C. 2182), and 155 (42 U.S.C. 2185) of the Atomic Energy Act must be made only by
Licensing and Review personnel.
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## Nearby sections

- [MPEP § 2103 Patent Examination Process](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2103.md)
- [MPEP § 2104 Requirements of 35 U.S.C. 101](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2104.md)
- [MPEP § 2104.01 Barred by Atomic Energy Act](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2104.01.md)
- [MPEP § 2105 Patent Eligible Subject Matter — Living Subject Matter](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2105.md)
- [MPEP § 2106 Patent Subject Matter Eligibility](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.md)
- [MPEP § 2106.01 [Reserved]](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.01.md)
- [MPEP § 2106.02 [Reserved]](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.02.md)
- [MPEP § 2106.03 Eligibility Step 1: The Four Categories of Statutory Subject Matter](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.03.md)
- [MPEP § 2106.04 Eligibility Step 2A: Whether a Claim is Directed to a Judicial Exception](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.04.md)
- [MPEP § 2106.04(a) Abstract Ideas](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.04(a).md)
- [MPEP § 2106.04(a)(1) Examples of Claims That Do Not Recite Abstract Ideas](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.04(a)(1).md)
- [MPEP § 2106.04(a)(2) Abstract Idea Groupings](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.04(a)(2).md)
- [MPEP § 2106.04(a)(3) Tentative Abstract Ideas](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.04(a)(3).md)
- [MPEP § 2106.04(b) Laws of Nature, Natural Phenomena & Products of Nature](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2106.04(b).md)

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/MPEP_S2104.01. Check the current official text before relying on it. Not legal advice.