Configurable source

Abstract

A gas source includes a single tray or a plurality of trays, the single tray or the plurality of trays including a top cover and a bottom cover, each tray including a precursor receiving portion and an outer circumferential wall having an outer wall surface, the outer circumferential wall including at least one projecting flange thereon, each projecting flange having an outer circumferential flange surface and a second surface extending from the circumferential flange surface in a direction of the outer wall surface; and a clamp actuated between a circumferential expansion condition and a circumferential contraction condition, wherein in the circumferential contraction position, the clamp contacts the second surface of the first tray and the second surface of the second tray.

Description

Configurable Source This disclosure relates to the field of precursor sources for delivering gas precursors to a final use location, such as a semiconductor or other type of processing chamber, where the precursor in gaseous or vapor form is used to form a deposited material on a substrate or otherwise react with the substrate or one or more material layers on the substrate. More particularly, this disclosure relates to the field of sources of precursors formed by subliming or evaporating a material to form a precursor gas. Precursor sources are known in the art and are used to deliver water vapor or gas precursors to a final use environment, such as providing a gas to form or etch a thin film coating on a substrate. In the case of semiconductor processing, the source is used to deliver a gas reagent to the processing environment, where the reagent or its components react with another material in the processing environment to form a film layer on the material substrate or remove material from the substrate, or simply form a deposited material such as a deposition layer on the substrate. Known reagents are used to form a deposition layer on a semiconductor substrate or on a film layer previously formed thereon, or to etch or reactively remove a portion of the semiconductor substrate or a material previously formed thereon, or otherwise interact with the surface of the substrate or a material disposed thereon. One known gas source used in a processing environment is a sublimation source, where a solid precursor is sublimed, i.e., directly or almost directly converted from its solid state to its gaseous state, and the released gas precursor flows to the processing environment, such as the interior volume of a semiconductor processing chamber. To sublime the deposited material from solid to gaseous state, the material is heated to its sublimation temperature under the internal pressure of the sublimation source. Another type of source is a vaporizer, where a liquid is heated to release its water vapor or gas for delivery to the use location. A known source uses a plurality of trays which are configured to hold solid material to be sublimated or vaporized, and the trays are stacked one above the other, and the topmost tray has a lid thereabove. Each tray in this system includes a generally flat base portion; and a circumferential body which is thicker than the flat base portion and extends away from the flat base portion in a direction away from the flat base portion such that when the bottom surface of the flat base portion of the next tray is located thereabove, the circumferential body of the next tray sits on the circumferential body of the underlying tray. Thus, a sublimation or vaporization volume is formed between the flat base portion of the first tray and the bottom surface of the flat base portion of the next tray stacked thereabove. Each flat base portion includes a plurality of channels extending through it from the bottom surface of the precursor receiving side of the tray to allow gases and carrier gases from one or more trays below the tray to flow through it. A gas outlet is connected to the volume formed between the topmost tray and the lid. A carrier gas, such as argon or the like which does not react with the gases released during sublimation of the solid material or vaporization of the liquid material, flows into the volume formed between the lowermost tray and the tray directly above it to help push or carry the released gases towards the sublimating material in the next tray in the tray stack. The gases released from the material in each of the trays thus flow through the trays located between the tray and the outlet. The carrier gas ensures that the released gases flow positively from the trays towards the gas outlet. Heating the precursor to the sublimation temperature is provided by heaters embedded in the circumferential body of each tray. The heaters heat the trays to increase the temperature of the trays to the sublimation temperature of the solid precursor at the pressure in the source, or to the vaporization temperature in the case of using a liquid precursor. A plurality of bolt holes extend through each circumferential body such that a plurality of bolts or threaded posts can extend through each circumferential body and be fastened at one or both ends of each circumferential body using fasteners to fix the circumferential body and thus the trays together. In one aspect, a gas source includes a plurality of trays including at least a first tray and a second tray, each tray including a source receiving portion and an outer circumferential wall having an outer wall surface which includes at least one protruding flange thereon, each protruding flange having an outer circumferential flange surface and a second surface extending from the circumferential flange surface in the direction of the outer wall surface; and a clamp which is actuatable between a circumferentially expanded condition and a circumferentially reduced condition, wherein in the circumferentially reduced position, it contacts the second surface of the first tray and the second surface of the second tray. In another aspect, a gas source includes a plurality of trays including at least a first tray and a second tray, each tray including a source receiving portion, an outer circumferential wall having an outer wall surface, and a separate heater associated with each of the first tray and the second tray. In another aspect, a method of maintaining a gas source includes the steps of: providing a plurality of trays, the plurality of trays including at least a first tray and a second tray, each tray including a source receiving portion and an outer circumferential wall having an outer wall surface, the outer circumferential wall including at least one protruding flange thereon, each protruding flange having an outer circumferential flange surface and a second surface extending from the circumferential flange surface in the direction of the outer wall surface; providing a clamp that is actuable between a circumferential expansion condition and a circumferential contraction condition, wherein in the circumferential contraction position, contacting the second surface of the first tray and the second surface of the second tray; monitoring the condition of at least one tray; and removing at least one tray from the plurality of trays by actuating the clamp from the circumferential contraction condition to the circumferential expansion condition while holding any other clamps between adjacent trays in the circumferential contraction condition. Herein, a sublimation source is provided that includes at least one tray on which a source precursor is used to provide a gaseous reagent or gaseous precursor produced therefrom. Here, each tray includes a precursor receiving portion surrounded by a flange that provides a support body for the tray; and a heating source located outside the flange, such as disposed on or in the precursor support side of the tray, surrounding the tray flange or both, and the outer circumferential surface of each tray includes at least one circumferential flange rib extending radially outward therefrom. In the case where a plurality of trays are employed in a single source, each tray is fixed to the next adjacent tray by a circumferential clamp that engages the circumferential flange ribs of two adjacent trays. A cover including a circumferential cover rib extending around its periphery is clamped to the last tray in the tray stack by engaging the circumferential ribs of the last tray and the cover by a circumferential clamp. A base including a circumferential base rib extending around its periphery is clamped to the first tray in the tray stack by engaging the circumferential ribs of the first tray and the base by a circumferential clamp. A carrier gas supply port is in fluid communication with the first tray in the tray stack, and a carrier gas outlet is connected to the last tray in the tray stack. The precursor receiving portion of each tray includes at least one flow port extending through it from a non-precursor receiving surface to the precursor receiving surface of the tray, and the flow port can be configured as a tube extending away from the precursor receiving surface of the tray. A hollow annular boss can extend from the precursor receiving surface of each tray such that when the trays are clamped together, an access conduit is formed to extend through the plurality of trays and thus provide access for monitoring to each tray. A sensor can extend through the access conduit to different ones of the trays to enable real-time monitoring of each tray and the precursor material therein. A carrier gas manifold is formed between the facing surfaces of the base and the first tray, whereby carrier gas injected through the gas supply port is delivered there and thus into at least one flow port of the lowermost tray. The gas released from the precursor source on each tray and the carrier gas pass through at least one flow port of each tray above it until the final tray, in which the gas and the carrier gas flow out through the source gas outlet. Here, in contrast to previous precursor sources, the precursor receiving surface of any one of the trays can be easily accessed by loosening the tray from the next adjacent tray that is clamped thereon, without having to disassemble or release the clamping pressure on all trays in the entire source to reach any single tray. Additionally, the conditions in each tray can be actively monitored to enable individual control of each tray heater to enable tray-by-tray control of the solid or liquid precursor temperature and thus the gas evolution therefrom. Initially referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the sublimation source 100 is shown in isometric view and cross-sectional view, and the source 100 is shown as not being covered in an insulator or received in a protective sheath. Here, the source 100 includes a plurality of trays 102 (here, by way of example and not limitation, six trays 102a - 102f), the plurality of trays being stacked one above the other, each tray 102 being substantially the same as each other tray 102 in the source 100; a base 104, the base being connected to the first tray 102 (here, the lowermost tray 102a) in the stack of trays 102a - 102f; and a lid 106, the lid being connected to the last tray 102 (here, the uppermost tray 102f) in the stack. A carrier gas inlet 108 extends through the lid 106 to enable carrier gas to flow into the source 100, and an evolved carrier gas outlet 110 extends outwardly from the lid to enable gaseous precursors to flow out of the source 100. Additionally, a monitoring rod 112 extends outwardly from the lid 106. Here, the carrier gas inlet 108 is a length of tubing that extends inwardly and is fixed to the carrier gas opening 114 provided therefor in the lid 106, such as by welding to the carrier gas opening 114 in the lid 106. The carrier gas opening 114 is located at the center of the circular profile of the lid 106. A carrier inlet gas fitting 116 for connecting the carrier gas inlet 108 to a carrier gas source is connected to the end of the tubing of the carrier gas inlet 108 that is distal to the lid 106. Here, the gas outlet 110 is a length of tubing that extends through the lid 106 and terminates adjacent to the last (here, the sixth) tray 102f (FIG. 2), such as by welding through the lid 106 to the outlet opening 109. A carrier outlet gas fitting 118 is connected to the end of the tubing of the gas outlet 110 that is distal to the lid 106 for connecting the gas outlet 110 to tubing for ultimate flow to the location of use of the gas evolved in the source 100. Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, each tray 102 is generally circular in plan view, and each tray includes an annular precursor receiving portion 130 surrounded by an outer annular mold wall 132 in the form of a thin-walled annular column. A central annular boss 134 in the form of a thin-walled annular column is generally disposed at the center of the precursor receiving portion 130. Here, the precursor receiving portion 130 includes a generally flat planar precursor receiving surface 136 and an opposite annular surface 137, and is annular in plan view and is defined at its outer circumferential end 138 by the inner wall 140 of the mold wall 132, and is defined at its inner circumferential end 142 by the circumferential central annular boss wall 144 of the central annular boss 134. Here, preferably, the precursor receiving portion 130, the mold wall 132 and the central annular boss 134 of each tray 102 are formed of a single piece of material or stock, such that they do not need to be welded or otherwise fastened or joined together. Depending on the desired operating temperature of the source 100 and the reactivity of the solid and gaseous precursors released with respect to different potential tray materials, the single piece of material or stock can be composed of quartz, stainless steel or other materials. A plurality of gas release flow channels 146 are provided in the form of tubes 124 that extend through the precursor receiving portion 130 and provide the gas release flow channels 146. Here, each of the gas release flow channels 146 extends outwardly and is generally perpendicular to the precursor receiving surface 136, and also extends from the opposite annular surface 137 (FIG. 4), which faces the adjacent tray 102, or in the case of tray 102a faces the base 104 (FIG. 2). The tubes 124 forming the gas release flow channels 146 can be formed (machined) from the same block or blank of material as the precursor receiving portion 130, the outer annular mold wall 132 and the central annular boss 134. Alternatively, the precursor receiving portion can have a plurality of tube receiving openings formed therethrough, such as by drilling the precursor receiving portion, and the tubes 124 are welded or otherwise secured to these openings. The gas release flow channels 146 of the tubes 124 formed or attached to each tray allow the gas released in the next tray 102 upstream in the carrier gas flow direction to flow into the tray, and thus allow the carrier gas to flow from the space between the opposite annular surface 137 of the first tray 102a and the base 104 into the first tray 102a. Thus, the gas flow channels 146 allow the gas to flow sequentially from the space between the tray 102a and the base 104 into the gas release volumes 120 of each of the trays 102a-102f, and thus to the gas outlet 110. Here, the inner gas flow wall 146 extends outwardly beyond the opposite annular surface 137. Thus, the circumferential stub tube 166 of the tube 124 extends outwardly from the opposite annular surface 137, within which the inner gas flow channel 146 extends and terminates at the flat planar annular boss wall 168. The central annular boss 134 includes a central annular boss wall 144 that forms a part of the outer circumferential surface of the central annular boss 134; and an inner carrier gas flow channel wall 147 that delimits a carrier gas inlet channel 149 that extends through the precursor receiving portion 130 of each tray 102 and generally through the center of the precursor receiving portion. The end of the central annular boss 134 that is distal to the precursor receiving surface 136 includes an enlarged annular ring-shaped portion 148 that has a flat planar next tray-facing surface 150 that has a circumferential seal ring groove 152 extending inwardly therefrom (Figure 6). The mold placement wall 132 surrounds the gas evolution volume 120, and the mold placement wall includes an inner wall 140 and an outer circumferential wall 154. The outer circumferential wall 154 includes a generally right circumferential portion 156 that is delimited at opposite ends by a first protruding portion 158 and a second protruding portion 160 that respectively form flanges extending radially outward from the outer circumferential wall 154. As illustrated in Figures 5 and 8, each of the first protruding portion 158 and the second protruding portion 160 of the tray 102 includes an outer right circumferential portion 162, a frustoconical tapered wall 164 that extends from the outer right circumferential portion 162 to the outer circumferential wall 154 of the tray 102, and a flat outer next tray-facing surface 163 that extends orthogonally and inwardly from the outer right circumferential portion 156. Here, the flat outer next tray-facing surface 163 on each tray includes a first flat outer next tray-facing surface 163a (Figure 5) and an opposite second flat outer next tray-facing surface 163b (Figure 8). The first flat outer next tray-facing surface 163a includes a seal ring groove 206a that extends circumferentially therein. Referring to Figures 2, 7, and 8, the base 104 is a generally circular element in plan view, and the base has a base wall 170 that has a generally circular inward-facing base wall surface 171 and a peripheral lower flange 172 in plan view. The lower flange 172 includes a generally flat planar tray contact surface 174 that includes a base seal groove 176 that extends inwardly therefrom and extends circumferentially around the base wall 170. The tray contact surface 174 is spaced apart from the base wall surface 171 by a base distal wall 178 that extends from the outer perimeter of the base wall surface 171 to the tray contact surface 174. The outer circumferential surface of the base 104 includes a generally right circular outer circumferential base wall 180 that extends in the direction of the base wall 170 from the tray contact surface 174, an inwardly tapered frustoconical base tapered wall 182 that extends therefrom, and an inner circumferential base wall 184 that extends generally parallel to the outer circumferential base wall 180 and terminates at the outer line 186 of the base wall. Referring to FIGS. 2, 5, and 6, the cover 106 has a similar configuration to the base 104, except that the cover also includes openings therethrough for receiving the carrier gas inlet 108, the carrier gas outlet 110, and the monitoring rod 112. Thus, the cover 106 is a generally circular element in plan view, having a cover wall 188 with an inflatable portion wall surface 189 that is generally circular in plan view and faces the precursor receiving surface 136 of the facing tray 102 (here 102f); and a peripheral upper flange 190. The upper flange 190 includes a generally flat planar final tray contact surface 192 that extends circumferentially around the tray-facing side circumference of the cover wall 188. The upper tray contact surface 192 is spaced from the cover wall 188 by a cover remote wall 194 that extends from the outer peripheral edge of the cover wall 188 to the upper tray contact surface 192. The inner remote wall 193 (FIG. 6) is generally located at the center of the circumference of the inflatable portion wall surface 189 and extends circumferentially from the inflatable portion wall surface 189 and terminates at a generally flat annular inlet seal wall 195. The outer circumferential surface of the cover 106 includes a generally right circular outer circumferential cover wall 196 that extends away from the upper tray contact surface 192, and an inwardly tapered frustoconical cover wall 198 extending therefrom, and an inner circumferential cover wall 200 that extends from the inwardly tapered frustoconical cover wall 198 in a direction away from the upper tray contact surface 192. To assemble the source 100, the precursor source material is loaded onto the precursor receiving surface 130 such that the precursor source material does not extend above the end of the tube 124 away from the precursor receiving surface 136. A plurality of trays 102 are connected and fixed together such that the flat planar annular boss wall 168 of a tray 102 faces and contacts the flat planar inner next tray facing surface 150 of an adjacent tray 102, with a sealing ring (such as an O-ring) located in the circumferential seal ring groove 152. Similarly, the first flat outer next tray facing surface 162a of a tray faces and contacts the opposite second flat outer next tray facing surface 162b of an adjacent tray 102, and a sealing ring (such as an O-ring) is disposed in the seal ring groove 206a. This configuration creates an outer circumferential seal and an inner circumferential seal around the precursor receiving surface 136 of one tray and the evolved gas volume 120 and the opposite annular surface 137 of the next tray 102. The cover 106 and the base 104 are connected to the stacked trays 102a - 102f at opposite ends of the stack, where the cover 106 is connected to tray 102f and the base 104 is connected to tray 102a. A seal ring 204 is disposed in the base seal groove 176 to effect a seal between the base 104 and the tray 102a when the tray contact surface 174 is biased against the next tray facing surface 162a of the tray 102a. Similarly, a seal ring 206 is seated in the seal ring groove 206a and provides a seal between the tray 102e and the cover 106 when the upper tray contact surface 192 is biased against the next tray facing surface 162b of the tray 102f. The seal ring By connecting a plurality of trays 102 (such as trays 102a - 102f) together, a gas evolution volume 120 is formed between the opposite annular surface 137 of one tray 102 (such as tray 102b) and the precursor receiving surface 136 of an adjacent tray 102 (such as tray 102a) facing the opposite annular surface 137 of tray 102b. Within this gas evolution volume 120, precursor material in solid or liquid form is located on the precursor receiving surface 136 and is heated to evolve gaseous or vapor precursors from the precursor material. Additionally, with respect to the plurality of gas evolution volumes 120 (one for each tray 102), one or more tubes 124 extend from each of the gas evolution volumes 120 in the direction from the base 104 to the lid 106, i.e., in the direction of gas flow through the source 100, over the precursor receiving surface 136 of the next adjacent tray 102. Specifically, the gas evolution flow channel 146 of the tube 124 extending through the precursor receiving portion 130 of tray 102b allows gas flow into the gas evolution volume 120b, the gas including precursor gas evolved in the gas evolution volume 120a between the solid precursor receiving surface 136 of tray 102a and the opposite annular surface of tray 102b and carrier gas flowing into the gas evolution volume 120a. Similarly, the gas evolution flow channel 146 of the tube 124 extending through the base of tray 102c allows gas flow, including precursor gas and carrier gas evolved in the gas evolution volume 120b, into the gas evolution volume 120c, and the gas evolution flow channel 146 of the tube 124 extending through the base of tray 102d allows gas flow, including precursor gas and carrier gas evolved in the gas evolution volume 128c, into the gas evolution volume 120d. The gas evolution flow channel 146 of the tube 124 extending through the base of tray 102e allows gas flow, including precursor gas and carrier gas evolved in the gas evolution volume 120d, into the gas evolution volume 120e. The gas evolution flow channel 146 of the tube 124 extending through the base of tray 102f allows gas flow, including precursor gas and carrier gas evolved in the gas evolution volume 120e, into the gas evolution volume 120f. Here, the gas evolution volume 120f is formed between the precursor receiving surface 136 of tray 102f and the inwardly inflatable portion wall surface 189 of the lid 106. The precursor gas and associated carrier gas evolved in all the gas evolution volumes 120a - 102f flow from the gas evolution volume 120f into the precursor exhaust inflatable portion 218b formed between the inflatable portion wall surface 189 of the lid 106 and the facing surface of the last tray 102 (here tray 102f). Thereby, gas flows outwards through the gas outlet 110.To introduce the carrier gas into each of the evolved gas volumes 120a - 120f, the carrier gas source is connected to the carrier gas inlet 108 to cause the carrier gas to flow therein. Thus, this carrier gas flows through the carrier gas inlet passage 149 in each of the trays 102f - 102a to the carrier gas plenum 218a formed between the inward-facing base wall surface 171 of the base 104 and the opposing annular surface 137 of the tray 102 (here the tray 102a, as best shown in Figure 2A). The flat planar annular boss wall 168 of the stub tube 166 of each of the tubes 124 extends outwardly from the opposing annular surface 137 and is spaced from the inward-facing base wall surface 171 by a distance g which is greater than zero length and less than the distance G (Figure 7) between the annular opposing wall 137 and the base wall surface 171. The carrier gas thus enters the evolved gas volume 120a where the carrier gas is mixed with the gas evolved from the solid precursor on the precursor receiving surface 136 of the tray 102a. The mixture of the carrier gas and the evolved gas thus flows through an appropriate one of the evolved gas flow passages 146 of the tubes 124 in the trays 102b - 102f and thus sequentially through the evolved gas volumes 120b - 120f to the gas outlet 110 of the source 100 and thus to the intended use location. The flow of the carrier gas helps to ensure a positive gas flow in the direction from the carrier gas plenum 218a to the gas outlet 110 to ensure that the evolved precursor flows out of the source 100 through the gas outlet 110. The sealing ring in the circumferential seal ring groove 152 of the central annular boss 134 prevents the carrier gas from leaking from the carrier gas inlet passage 149 into the adjacent circumferentially surrounding evolved gas volume 120. The sealing ring spans the gap between the base seal ring groove 152 and the facing surface of the inlet seal wall 195 (Figure 6). Although the precursor material from which the precursor gas is formed is described herein as a solid, the source 100 can also be used for liquid precursors. For liquid precursors, the liquid precursor can be poured onto the precursor receiving surface 130 of each tray such that the liquid precursor does not overflow into the end of the evolved gas flow passage 146 of the tube 124 which is distal to the precursor receiving surface 130 of the associated tray 102. Here, releasable clips 210 are used to hold the base 104 to the tray 102a, the tray 102a to the tray 102b, the tray 102b to the tray 102c, the tray 102c to the tray 102d, the tray 102d to the tray 102e, and the cover 106 to the tray 102e. Referring to FIGS. 5, 8, and 9, each of the clips 210 used is substantially the same within manufacturing tolerances and includes a hoop portion 212 and a buckle portion 214. Here, clip 210a secures base 104 to tray 102a, and clip 102b secures tray 102a to tray 102b. Clip 210c secures tray 102b to tray 102c. Clip 210d secures tray 102c to tray 102d, and clip 102e secures tray 102d to tray 102e. Clip 210f secures tray 102e to tray 102f, and clip 210g secures tray 102f to cover 106. As described herein, each of trays 102a - 102f, cover 106, and base 104 includes an outer peripheral portion configured to lap with clip 210. Here, the connection of clip 210 to secure cover 106 to tray 102f will be described, but clamping base 104 to tray 102a and clamping each tray 102 to the next adjacent tray 102 is the same within manufacturing tolerances. Here, clip 210 is configured to be reusable and includes a hoop portion 212 and a buckle portion 214. Hoop portion 212 includes a cut - annular shape portion 216 having a strip 217 of a single continuous configuration connected to buckle portion 214 at opposite ends on its circumference. Here, buckle portion 214 is configured as a threaded fastener 220 that extends through a ferrule 222, through a through - opening 224 in an outwardly projecting first end 226 of hoop portion 212, and into a threaded opening 228 in a second enlarged portion 230 at the second circumferential end of hoop portion 212 and threadedly engages the threaded opening. Here, ferrule 222 is configured as a hollow tubular member having an inner diameter sized to allow fastener 220 to freely slide through it and an outer diameter greater than the diameter of through - opening 224. When fastener 220 is screwed out or retracted but still within threaded opening 228, the inner circumference of hoop portion 212 is large enough greater than the outer circumference of the circumferential cover wall 196 (FIG. 5) of cover 106, and thus hoop portion 210 can be circumferentially placed around the circumferential cover wall. When the fastener is screwed inwardly from threaded opening 228, the diameter of strip 217 of clip 210 decreases to contact the outer surfaces of a pair of adjacent trays 102, tray 102f and cover 106, and a portion of tray 102a and base 104. As shown in Figure 5, the clip 210 is configured to have a formed inner surface 234, the contour of which matches or substantially matches the outer surface contour of the overlapping portion of the outer circumference of the cover 116 and the tray 102f (or two trays 102, or the tray 102a and the base 104) in cross-section. Thus, the clip 210 includes a generally circumferential first upright wall 236 having a generally circumferential flat inner wall surface 238; a first clip tapered portion 240a and a second clip tapered portion 240b that radially extend inwardly from the upright wall at the same distance from opposite sides of the upright wall; and a first inner circumferential wall 242a and a second inner circumferential wall 242b that extend generally parallel to the first upright wall 236 and extend the same length from the inner ends of the first tapered wall 240a and the second tapered wall 240b. By positioning the clip 210 around the outer circumferential cover wall 196 of the cover 106 and the adjacent outer right circumferential portion 162 of the tray 102f adjacent to the cover 106, and rotating the threaded fastener 220 such that the threaded fastener 220 rotates inwardly from the threaded opening 228, the strip 217 of the clip 210 will move radially inwardly from itself to position the first clip tapered portion 240a and the second clip tapered portion 240b to contact the inwardly tapered frustoconical cover wall 198 of the cover and the adjacent frustoconical tapered wall 164 of the tray 102f. A sealing ring (such as an O-ring or other compressible ring) is disposed in the groove 206a and contacts the inner surface of the groove, and is sized to extend outwardly from the groove 206a in the uncompressed state of the sealing ring. Thus, when the cover 106 is placed on the tray 102f, its upper tray contact surface 192 can be spaced apart from the next tray facing surface 163a by the sealing ring 206. When the clip 210 is further radially compressed by further rotating the threaded fastener 220 such that the threaded fastener 220 moves further inwardly through the threaded opening 228, the radial inward movement of the first clip tapered portion 240a and the second clip tapered portion 240b will cause the inwardly tapered frustoconical cover wall 198 of the cover and the adjacent frustoconical tapered wall 164 of the tray 102f to move towards each other. This compresses the seal 206 in the sealing groove 206a to ultimately bring the next tray facing surface 163a into contact with the upper tray contact surface 192, thereby fixing the cover 106 to the tray 102f. In the same manner, the adjacent second protruding portion 160 of the tray 102f is fixed to the first protruding portion of the tray 102e using the clip 210, and each second connecting portion of the remaining trays 102 is fixed to the first connecting portion of the adjacent tray 102 using the clip 210, and the second connecting portion of the tray 102a is fixed to the peripheral lower flange 172 of the base 102 using the clip 210.The complete source 100 is assembled in such a way that the precursor receiving portions 130 of the trays are in fluid communication with each other and in fluid communication with the carrier gas inlet 108 and the discharge gas outlet 110, but are otherwise sealed from the surrounding environment surrounding the source 100. In one aspect of the present invention, heating elements are provided integrally for each tray 102 and are embedded within the precursor receiving surface 136 of the tray 102. As schematically shown in FIG. 3, the heating element 244 extends in a circumferentially truncated sine manner in a circumferentially truncated sine heater groove 246 extending inwardly from the precursor receiving surface 1 of the tray 102. Here, the heater groove 246 includes five full protrusions 245 and one partial protrusion 248, where each full protrusion 245 includes a first radially extending portion 250, a second radially extending portion 252, a first inner curved portion 254 extending from the radially inner end of the first radially extending portion 250, a second inner curved portion 256 extending from the radially inner end of the second radial portion 252, and an outer curved portion 258 extending between the outer radial ends of the first radially extending portion 250 and the second radially extending portion 252. The outer curved portion extends generally along an arc centered on the center of the gas inlet channel 149. The first curved portion 252 of each protrusion 240 is directly connected to the second curved portion of the next protrusion 240, such that a continuous heater groove 246 is formed in the precursor receiving portion 130. At the opposite ends of the heater groove 245 forming the partial protrusion 248, the radially outer end of the first radially extending portion 250 terminates and is spaced from the adjacent outer curved portion 258 at the other end of the heater groove 245. The heating element 244 is herein configured as a resistive heating element, which consists of an internal resistance wire element and a metallic outer sheath that is inert with respect to the precursors to be processed in the source 100. As is known in the art, this heating element 244 includes a resistance wire element and wiring (not shown) encapsulated in a flexible tubular sheath 260. The tubular sheath 260 extends outwardly from the outer wall of the tray through a heater opening 262 provided for this purpose and is press-fitted, staked, welded, or vacuum brazed into the heater groove 246 over the full or nearly full length of the heater groove 246. In the case of welding, the welding material may cover the tubular sheath 260 such that the tubular sheath is not exposed to the internal gas evolution volume of the tray 102, or all or part of the tubular sheath 260 may remain exposed to the gas evolution volume. The heater tubular sheath 260 extends through an opening 262 provided in the placement mold wall 312 for its passage and is fixed therein using a leak-proof method (between the inner wall of the opening and the outer surface of the sheath 260), which includes but is not limited to welding, caulking, brazing, etc. to the inner surface or outer surface or the surrounding surface of the heater opening 262 to seal the interface between the heater tubular sheath 260 and the opening 262. The heating element 244 is connected to a power source (not shown) external to the tray 102 and the source 100 to supply power to the resistance wire element of the heating element 244, thereby raising the temperature of the resistance wire element and the precursor receiving surface 136 of the tray 102 to the sublimation temperature of the material to be sublimated to form a precursor gas or higher than the sublimation temperature. Although the heater groove 246 is shown as having six protrusions, other heater layouts may also be used. The intention of the heater groove 246 layout is to form or generate an acceptable uniform temperature across the sublimation source receiving surface 136 at a reasonable manufacturing cost for the source. The heater 244 is selected to provide the desired temperature within the precursor receiving surface 130 of the tray, which is high enough to cause the solid precursor placed thereon to sublime and release gas therefrom, or to heat a liquid precursor to cause it to vaporize or evaporate. Temperatures of approximately higher than 20°C and up to or exceeding 1200°C are envisioned. In use, initially the source is loaded with a solid precursor at a local ambient temperature such as room temperature (20°C) or a different temperature that is still lower than the sublimation temperature of the precursor (or the very low vaporization temperature of a liquid precursor) at the local ambient pressure to which the solid precursor is exposed during loading of the precursor onto the tray 102. Before loading the solid precursor or liquid precursor into the tray 102a to which the susceptor 104 is attached, the susceptor 104 can be connected to the tray 102a. Then the solid or liquid precursor is placed on the precursor receiving surface 136 of the tray 102a. Then each subsequent tray 102b - 102f can be placed on the just-filled tray filled with the precursor, and the next tray 102 is placed thereon until the desired number of trays are located one above another. Then, each tray 102 is clamped to the next adjacent tray 102, the susceptor 106 is attached to the first tray 102a in the stack of trays 102 if not already attached, and the lid 106 is positioned above and clamped to the last tray 102f in the stack of trays 102. The precursor can be poured or loaded onto the precursor receiving surface 136 of each tray 102 before stacking the trays 102 and attaching the susceptor 104 and the lid 106, the precursor can be poured or loaded onto the precursor receiving surface 136 of each tray 102 after the tray 102 is connected to the susceptor 104 or another tray thereon while the precursor receiving surface 136 is open and exposed, or a combination of the two methods. The trays 102, the susceptor 104, and the lid 106 are properly connected together by the clips 210. The heating element 244 of the source 100 is connected to a power source, and then the source 100 is ready for use. Here, after being assembled with the clips 210, the source can be surrounded by an insulator that can be strapped or adhered to the source, placed in an enclosure, or both. If a problem is detected with any tray 102, the tray 102 can be removed and replaced with a new tray 102 without disassembling the entire connected stack of trays. Here, the defective tray 102 is removed by opening the two clips 210 that connect it to the source, a new tray 102 with the precursor therein is placed in the stack where the defective tray 102 was removed, and the clips 210 are reconnected and tightened to secure the replacement tray 102 to the source 100. In one aspect of the present invention, the conditions in the evolved gas volume 120 of each tray 102 and the tray 102 temperature are monitored using a sensor tube 264 (Figure 2), which extends inwardly and through a monitoring rod 112 and through a sensor rod aperture 266 (Figure 3) that extends through each precursor receiving portion 260 in the tray 102. The sensor rod (if desired) can be sealed with the sensor rod aperture 266, for example, in the case of using a liquid precursor material from which the evolved gas precursor is derived. For example, the sensor tube 264 can include a plurality of sensors, such as a Bragg fiber grating sensing device or (FBG) or another temperature sensor such as a temperature sensing device, such as a thermocouple, a resistance temperature detector, or an infrared sensor. The Bragg fiber grating technology allows for real-time monitoring and control of up to 16 channels in combination with a thermally controlled integrated tray heater. For example, temperature sensing of each of the trays 102 is allowed by positioning a first temperature sensor such that the precursor receiving portion 130 of the tray 102 surrounds the position of the sensor in the sensor tube 264 to control the heating element 244 of the tray 102 to raise or lower the temperature by changing the electrical energy supplied to the heating element 244 per unit time, and to control the heating element 244 in the precursor receiving portion 130 of the tray that overlies a particular tray. For example, using the heater shown in Figure 3, the temperature in the evolved gas volume 120 of a given tray (e.g., tray 102b) is primarily a function of the temperature of the precursor receiving portion of the tray 102b and secondarily a function of the temperature of the precursor receiving portion of the tray 102c above it. The temperature of the precursor receiving portion of the tray 102a also has a certain influence on the temperature of the evolved gas volume 120b of the tray 102b. By monitoring the temperature of each precursor receiving portion of each tray 102, the heating of the tray 102 and its adjacent tray 102 can be changed to control the uniformity of the temperature of each precursor receiving portion of the tray. In addition, if desired, a designed change or gradient in temperature from tray 102 to tray 102 can also be achieved by monitoring the temperature of each precursor receiving portion 130 of the tray 102 and controlling the power to each of the heaters to result in the desired temperature change or gradient. Alternatively, for example, temperature sensing of each of the evolved gas volumes 120 is allowed by positioning a first temperature sensor such that the evolved gas volume 120 above a particular tray 102 surrounds the position of the sensor in the sensor tube 264 to control the heating element 244 on one or both sides of the evolved gas volume 120 to raise or lower the temperature in the evolved gas volume 120 by changing the electrical energy supplied to one or both of the heating elements 244 on the opposite sides of the evolved gas volume 120 per unit time.In one aspect, as shown in FIG. 12, the signal output by the sensor is fed via a suitable cable 304 to a programmable logic controller 306, which is programmable to output an energy control signal via a suitable output cable 308 to a heating element power supply 310 to control the energy (power) per unit time supplied to each of the heating elements 244 individually via a suitable power cable 312, thereby enabling the desired uniformity of the temperature of the tray 102, which results in a more uniform conversion of the precursor to gas or vapor across the plurality of trays 102. Thus, the total flow rate of the precursor per unit time can be maintained over a longer time period because the precursor to be released will be in all the trays 102 in substantially equal amounts within the delivery life of loading the precursor into the source 100 once. For example, by individually controlling the heating elements based on the temperature of the tray 102, the adjacent release source volume 120, or both, the trays 102a, 102f located at opposite ends of the stack of trays 102 can receive more heat energy, while the trays 102c, 102d near the center of the stack of trays 102 can receive less heat energy, to result in a uniform temperature within an acceptable temperature range between the different trays 102. FIG. 11 is an isometric view of an alternative clip for the clip 210, and FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of this alternative clip structure. Here, the heating clip 280 is used when replacing the clip 210. The heating clip has the same general construction as the clip 210, including a threaded rod and a threaded opening configuration for opening and closing the clip. However, compared to the clip 210, the heating clip 280 is configured by an outer hoop 282 and an inner configured portion 284 having the contour of the clip 210, such that a first heater receiving groove 286 and a second heater receiving groove 288 are formed between different portions of the hoop 282 and the configured portion 284. Here, the hoop 282 includes the closing system of the clip 210, which is modified to connect to opposite ends of the hoop 282. This includes a buckle portion 214 having a threaded fastener 220 that extends through a ferrule 222, through a through opening 224 in the outwardly projecting first end 226 of the hoop portion 212, and into a threaded opening 228 in a second enlarged portion 230 at the second circumferential end 232 of the hoop portion 212 and threadedly engages with the threaded opening. When the fastener 220 is screwed out or retracted but still within the threaded opening 228, the inner circumference of the hoop 282 is large enough greater than the outer circumference of the circumferential cover wall 196, and thus the hoop portion 210 can be circumferentially placed around the circumferential cover wall. In the same manner as the clip 210, rotating the threaded fastener 220 to move inward from the threaded opening 228 causes the circumference of the hoop 282 and thus the inner configured portion 284 to shrink, so that the inner configured portion makes clamping surface contact with the outer circumferences of the adjacent tray 102, tray 102a and the base 104, and the tray 102f and the cover 106. Referring to FIG. 10, the inner configuration portion 284 of the heating clip 280 has the same structure as the clip 210, including a generally circumferential first upright wall 236 having a generally circumferential flat inner wall surface 238; a first clip tapered portion 240a and a second clip tapered portion 240b, the first clip tapered portion and the second clip tapered portion radially extending inwardly from the upright wall by the same distance from opposite sides of the upright wall; and a first inner circumferential wall 242a and a second inner circumferential wall 242b, the first inner circumferential wall and the second inner circumferential wall extending generally parallel to the first upright wall 236 and extending the same length from the inner ends of the first tapered wall 240a and the second tapered wall 240b. Here, the inner configuration portion 284 is segmented into a plurality of partial circumferential extension segments 292, and the outer circumferential wall surface 290 of each of the segments 292 is attached to the inner wall 294 of the outer hoop 282. A first heater groove 286 is formed in a partial circumferential extension space between the inner wall 294 of the outer hoop 282 and the adjacent outer surfaces of the first tapered portion 240a of the forming portion 284 and the first inner wall 242a. A second heater groove 288 is formed in a partial circumferential extension space between the inner wall 294 of the outer hoop 282 and the adjacent outer surfaces of the second tapered portion 240b of the forming portion 284 and the second inner wall 242b. A first resistance wire heater 300a (such as a heating element 244 configured as a resistance heating element composed of an inner heating element and an outer sheath) extends circumferentially within the first heater groove 286, and a second resistance wire heater 300b (such as a heating element 244 configured as a resistance heating element composed of an inner heating element and an outer sheath) extends circumferentially within the second heater groove 288. Tubular sheaths extend outwardly from each of the first heater groove 286 and the second heater groove 288 through corresponding openings penetrating the outer hoop 282 and terminate in connectors 298 (298a, 298b) located outside the outer hoop 282. In FIG. 11, a heater electrical lead 302 and a connector 304 for connection to a power source are shown connected to one of the connectors 298, specifically, connector 298a. The heating clamp 280 can be opened on the corresponding clamping features of the tray 102, the lid 106, and the base 104 in the same manner as the clamp 210. In the heating clamp 280, when the clamp is tightened or loosened, the segmentation of the inner configuration portion 284 enables the heater tube to compress or radially expand into the space between adjacent segments. One or more heaters in the heating clamp 280 can also be independently controlled using the programmable logic controller 306 of FIG. 12 in the same manner as described for controlling the heating from the heating element 244. The heaters 300a and 300b can be separate heaters and be powered separately, or a single heater extends almost circumferentially around the clamp in one of the first heater receiving groove 286 and the second heater receiving groove 288, and then enters the other of the first heater receiving groove and the second heater receiving groove to extend circumferentially around the heating clamp 280 therein. Each heating clamp 280 spans and contacts two adjacent trays 102, the tray and the lid 106, or the tray 102 and the base 104. One of the resistance wire heaters 300 in each heating clamp 280 spanning two trays 102 will generally surround the sublimation source receiving surface 132 of one of the trays 102, and the other of the heaters 300 will surround the evolved gas volume 120 of the next tray 102 to which the heating clamp 280 is also connected. The heating clamp 280 can be used as a supplement to the heating element 244 embedded in the source receiving surface 130, or as a replacement or substitute therefor. Using both the heater 244 and the surrounding resistance wire heater 300 in the heating clamp 280 can be beneficial for tuning the temperature across the surface of the sublimation source receiving surface 132 by limiting the heat loss generated by it at the outer circumferential portion of the heating clamp. Additionally, only one of the grooves 286, 288 can receive a heater therein. Additionally, the heating clamp 280 can be used to clamp two trays 102 together, but without the resistance wire heater 300 that does not include other heaters therein. In use, the source 100 can be surrounded by an insulating sheath, such as a sheath configured by two semi-cylindrical segments and placed together over the source 100 and strapped or adhered together. Additionally, the source (and the insulator) can be placed in another container, sleeve, or the like. Figures 13 and 14 are isometric views of the tray, showing an alternative heater layout using the heating element 244 described with respect to FIG. 3. In FIG. 13, the heating element extends through the mold wall 132 as described with respect to FIG. 3, but here along an outer circumferential loop 314 on an outer circumferential sinusoidal path groove 318 in the precursor receiving portion 130 of the tray 102 and along an inner circumferential loop 316 on an inner sinusoidal path groove 320 in the precursor receiving portion 130 of the tray 102. The connection jumper portion 322 of the heating element 244 extends between the inner circumferential loop and the outer circumferential loop 316 to connect these loops of the heating element 244 in series. The connection portion of the heating element 244 extends through the mold wall 132 in a sealed manner. The inner circumferential loop 316 and the outer circumferential loop 314 enable heat to be more easily dissipated into the precursor receiving portion 103 of the tray 102. In FIG. 14, an example of a dual heater for heating the tray 102 is shown. Here, a first heating element 244a extends from its connection to a power cable (not shown), through the mold wall 132 to a first opening 324 and into a first circumferential sinusoidal path groove 326 in the precursor receiving portion, which is centered at a first diameter from the center of the precursor receiving surface 130 of the tray 102. A second heating element 244b extends from its connection to a power cable (not shown), through a second opening 328 and into a second circumferential sinusoidal path groove 330, which is centered at a second diameter from the center of the precursor receiving portion, the second diameter being greater than the first diameter. Here, the heating elements 244a, 244 can be controlled individually, powered individually, or both, to achieve a more uniform temperature in the radial direction in the precursor receiving portion. In FIGS. 13 and 14, the heaters 244 and the heaters 244a, 244b are fixed in the corresponding grooves of the precursor receiving portion in the same manner as the heater 130 is fixed in its groove in FIG. 3. Alternatively, the tray may simply include a number of radial grooves similar to the jumper portion 322, each radial groove having a heating element therein, a plurality of circumferentially extending grooves, or a combination thereof, and the radial grooves can be controlled individually, powered individually, or both to allow the designers and users of the tray 102 to optimize the temperature distribution across the substrate receiving portion 130 for the desired precursor to be used therewith. Herein, the modular nature of the source architecture enables a variety of configurations. In one aspect, the source architecture includes at least one tray and a lid or base, where the tray is clamped together with a portion of the lid or base by at least partially circumferentially extending clips surrounding a portion of the tray. The tray is heated by an internal or embedded heating element, a heater extending circumferentially around the tray and operatively connected to the clips, or both. In another aspect, the tray heater includes at least a single length of heating material embedded in the base of the tray. The single length can be configured in the form of a circumferential wave or a sinusoidal pattern to extend along a portion of the outer peripheral edge of the tray, a portion of the inner peripheral edge of the tray, and a position intermediate the inner and outer peripheral edges of the tray. Alternatively, the heater can be embedded in the base of the tray and include a radially inner portion and a radially outer portion that are electrically connected in series. Additionally, two different heaters can be employed and individually controlled, with one heater disposed in a radially inner position relative to the other heater. Additionally, in one aspect, the clamp is configured to include at least one circumferential groove or recess into which the heater can be secured to substantially extend around the tray when the clamp is connected to the tray. The clamp can include two circumferentially extending grooves into each of which the heater (a single continuous heater or two separate heaters) can be secured. Furthermore, the source is configured to present an easily maintainable source. For example, in the case where the source includes at least one tray connected to a lid or at least one of the bases by a circumferentially extending clamp, the tray is maintained by simply loosening it from the lid or the base. In the case where a plurality of trays are stacked, the maintenance personnel need only simply loosen the tray to be maintained from the tray or its lid located above it to allow access to its inner precursor receiving surface. The modularity of the source allows for the production of a source having one or more trays, where the number of trays can be optimized based on the material for releasing gas in the source, the intended use requirements of the source, the available space in which the source can be placed, the time required to maintain the source, or other factors. Thus, sources having from one to a plurality of trays are envisioned. The use of individual tray heaters embedded in, surrounding, or both the trays enables more uniform control of the tray temperature in the stacking direction of the tray stack. Here, in the case where the gas in each lower tray passes through each tray located above it, in the case where each tray heater generates the same amount of heat, the upper trays will become hotter than the lower trays, and in the case where the release rate of the gas from the solid or liquid precursor increases at higher temperatures, the upper trays will need to replace their source material while the source material (solid or liquid) remains in the lower trays. Thus, the user must maintain the source before all of the source material is used, otherwise the supply quantity of the source gas released per unit time will suffer a decline. Here, by monitoring the temperature conditions at each tray, the individual heaters can be individually controlled to release different amounts of heat, thereby generating the same temperature within a tolerance range in each tray. This results in a more uniform precursor usage rate, thereby allowing an extension of the maintenance time for each newly maintained source and making the time when the source needs to be maintained more predictable. Source 100 as described herein provides the ability to use a single lid 106, a single base 104, and any number of trays 102 needed to provide a surface area or precursor to be sublimated or vaporized into a carrier gas stream. Additionally, the tray size can vary such that the volume of gas emitted over each tray can vary in depth or diameter or both to meet the specific space and gas delivery requirements of the user generated by the source. Additionally, in the case where the gas source material (i.e., solid or liquid precursor) will emit gas at room temperature or at a temperature achievable using a heated carrier gas or a surrounding heater, the use of an embedded heater and heating clips 280 as shown in FIGS. 3, 13, and 14 can be avoided. In this case, trays without an internal heating element 244 can be clamped together to provide the source. Although the foregoing relates to embodiments of the present disclosure, other and additional embodiments of the present disclosure can be envisioned without departing from the basic scope of the present disclosure, and the scope of the present disclosure is determined by the appended claims for invention. 100: Source 102, 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e, 102f: Tray 104: Base 106: Cover 108: Carrier gas inlet 109: Outlet opening 110: Carrier gas outlet 112: Monitoring rod 114: Carrier gas opening 116: Carrier inlet gas fitting 118: Carrier outlet gas fitting 120, 120a, 120b, 120c, 120d, 120e, 120f: Ejected gas volume 124: Pipe 130: Precursor receiving part 132: Molding wall 134: Central annular boss 136: Precursor receiving surface 137: Opposite annular surface 138: Outer circumferential end 140: Inner wall 142: Inner circumferential end 144: Central annular boss wall 146: Ejected gas flow channel 147: Inner carrier gas flow channel wall 148: Enlarged annular ring-shaped part 149: Carrier gas inlet channel 150: Next tray-facing surface in the flat plane 152: Circumferential seal ring groove 154: Outer circumferential wall 156: Generally right circumferential part 158: First protruding part 160: Second protruding part 162: Outer right circumferential part 162a: First flat outer next tray-facing surface 162b: Second flat outer next tray-facing surface 163: Flat outer next tray-facing surface 163a: First flat outer next tray-facing surface 163b: Second flat outer next tray-facing surface 164: Frustoconical tapered wall 166: Circumferential short pipe 168: Flat plane annular boss wall 170: Base wall 171: Base wall surface 172: Lower flange 174: Tray contact surface 176: Base seal groove 178: Base remote wall 180: Outer circumferential base wall 182: Frustoconical base tapered wall 184: Inner circumferential base wall 186: Outer line of the base wall 188: Cover wall 189: Inflatable part wall surface 190: Upper flange 192: Upper tray contact surface 193: Inner remote wall 194: Cover remote wall 195: Generally flat annular inlet seal wall 196: Generally right circular outer circumferential cover wall 197: As shown in the figure,Textless 198: inwardly tapered frustoconical cover wall 200: inner circumferential cover wall 204, 206: sealing rings 206a: sealing ring groove 210, 210a, 210b, 210c, 210d, 210e, 210f: clamps, hoop portions 212: hoop portion 214: snap ring portion 216: cut annular shape portion 217: single continuous configured strip 218: carrier gas inflation portion 218b: exhaust inflation portion 218a: carrier gas inflation portion 220: fastener 222: ferrule 224: through opening 226: first end portion 228: threaded opening 230: second enlarged portion 232: second circumferential end 234: formed inner surface 236: first upright wall 238: generally circumferentially flat inner wall surface 240b: second tapered portion 240a: first tapered portion 240: next raised portion 242b: second inner circumferential wall 242a: first inner circumferential wall 244: heating element 244a: first heating element 244b: second heating element 245: full raised portion 246: heater groove 248: partial raised portion 250: first radially extending portion 252: second radially extending portion 254: first inner curved portion 256: second inner curved portion 258: outer curved portion 260: tubular sheath 262: heater opening 264: sensor tube 266: sensor rod aperture 280: heating clamp 282: outer hoop 284: inner configured portion, formed portion 286: first heater groove 288: second heater groove 290: outer circumferential wall surface 292: partial circumferential extension 294: inner wall 298, 298a, 298b: connectors 300a: first resistance wire heater 300b: second resistance wire heater 302: heater electrical lead 304: cable, connector 306: programmable logic controller 308: output cable 310: heating element power supply 312: molding wall, power cable 314: outer circumferential loop 316: inner circumferential loop 318: outer circumferential sinusoidal path groove 320: inner sinusoidal path groove 322: jumper wire portion 324: first opening 326: first circumferential sinusoidal path groove 328: second opening 330: second circumferential sinusoidal path groove, Accordingly, in order to understand in detail the manner of the above-described features of the present disclosure, the disclosure briefly summarized above may be described more particularly by reference to the embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be noted, however, that the accompanying drawings merely illustrate typical embodiments of the present disclosure and should not be considered as limiting the scope of the present disclosure, as the present disclosure may admit other equally effective embodiments. FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the exterior of the source of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the source of FIG. 1. Figure 2A is a partial cross-sectional isometric view of the source of Figure 1, the source having heating clips that clamp together adjacent trays, and one of the trays and the base of the source. Figure 3 is an isometric view of the precursor receiving side of the tray of the source of Figures 1 and 2. Figure 4 is an isometric view of the front face of the tray of Figure 3. Figure 5 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an example of clamping the tray to the lid of the source of Figures 1 and 2. Figure 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of the lid and adjacent tray of Figure 1, showing the carrier gas piping connected into the source. Figure 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of the source of Figures 1 and 2, showing an opening in the carrier gas flow volume of the tray leading into a carrier gas manifold located between the tray and the base. Figure 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of the source of Figures 1 and 2, showing the base connected to an adjacent tray. Figure 9 is an isometric view of a clip for holding the trays of the source of Figures 1 and 2 clamped together. Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative clip of the clip of Figure 9. Figure 11 is an isometric view of the alternative clip of Figure 10. Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of a heater control system for the source of Figure 1. Figure 13 is an isometric view of a tray having an alternative embedded heater layout. Figure 14 is an isometric view of an additional alternative embedded heater layout. Domestic deposit information (please note in the order of deposit institution, date, number) None Foreign deposit information (please note in the order of deposit country, institution, date, number) None 100: Source 102, 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e, 102f: Trays 104: Base 106: Lid 108: Carrier gas inlet 110: Carrier gas outlet 112: Monitoring rod 114: Carrier gas opening 116: Carrier inlet gas fitting 118: Carrier outlet gas fitting 120: Vent gas volume

Claims

1. A gas source comprising: a plurality of trays, each tray including a precursor receiving portion and an outer circumferential wall having an outer wall surface, the outer circumferential wall including at least one projecting flange thereon, each projecting flange having an outer circumferential flange surface and a second surface extending from the outer circumferential flange surface in a direction of the outer wall surface; and a clamp actuable between a circumferential expansion condition and a circumferential contraction condition, wherein in the circumferential contraction condition, the clamp contacts the second surface of a first tray and the second surface of a second tray; wherein the precursor receiving portion further includes a heater groove extending inwardly therefrom.

2. The gas source as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first tray and the second tray further include an annular adjacent tray facing surface extending radially inward from the outer circumferential flange surface.

3. The gas source as described in claim 2, wherein the annular adjacent tray faces the surface system plane and extends orthogonally to the outer circumferential flange surface.

4. The gas source as described in claim 3 further comprises: a sealing groove extending inwardly from the annular adjacent tray surface and having a sealing ring therein.

5. The gas source as described in claim 1 further comprises: a heater extending through the outer circumferential wall.

6. The gas source as described in claim 5, wherein the heater is disposed in the heater trench.

7. The gas source as described in claim 1, wherein the clamp further comprises at least one heater.

8. The gas source as claimed in claim 1 further comprises: a sensor tube extending through at least one precursor receiving portion of a tray.

9. A gas source comprising: a single tray or a plurality of trays, the single tray or the plurality of trays including a top cover and a bottom cover, each tray including a precursor receiving portion and an outer circumferential wall having an outer wall surface; and a separate heater associated with each of the first tray and the second tray, wherein the precursor receiving portion on each tray includes a heater groove.

10. The gas source as described in claim 9, wherein each heater is a tubular structure disposed inside the heater trench.

11. The gas source as claimed in claim 9, wherein the outer circumferential surface further includes at least one projecting flange thereon, each projecting flange having an outer circumferential flange surface and a second surface extending from the outer circumferential flange surface in a direction of the outer wall surface; a clamp actuable between a circumferential expansion condition and a circumferential contraction condition, wherein in the circumferential contraction condition, the clamp contacts the second surface of the first tray and the second surface of the second tray; and a first heater disposed in the clamp and extending partially around the outer circumferential wall of one of the first tray and the second tray.

12. The gas source as described in claim 11 further comprises: a second heater that extends partially around the outer circumferential wall of one of the first tray and the second tray.

13. The gas source as claimed in claim 11, wherein the precursor receiving portion on each tray includes a heater groove, and each heater is a tubular structure disposed inside the heater groove.

14. The gas source as claimed in claim 9, wherein the outer circumferential surface further includes at least one projecting flange thereon, each projecting flange having an outer circumferential flange surface and a second surface extending from the outer circumferential flange surface in the direction of the outer wall surface; a base having a base outer wall having a base outer wall surface having a projecting flange thereon, the projecting flange having a base outer circumferential flange surface and a base second surface extending from the base outer circumferential flange surface in the direction of the outer wall surface; and a clip actuated between a circumferential expansion condition and a circumferential contraction condition, wherein in the circumferential contraction condition, the clip contacts a first surface of the first tray and the second surface of the base.

15. The gas source as described in claim 9 further comprises: a cover including a monitoring well extending therethrough.

16. A method of maintaining a gas source, comprising the steps of: providing a plurality of trays, the plurality of trays including at least one first tray and one second tray, each tray including a precursor receiving portion and an outer circumferential wall having an outer wall surface, the outer circumferential wall including at least one projecting flange thereon, each projecting flange having an outer circumferential flange surface and a second surface extending from the outer circumferential flange surface in a direction of the outer wall surface; providing a clamp actuable between a circumferential expansion condition and a circumferential contraction condition, wherein in the circumferential contraction condition, the clamp contacts the second surface of the first tray and the second surface of the second tray; monitoring the condition of at least one tray; and removing at least one tray from the plurality of trays by actuating the clamp from the circumferential contraction condition to the circumferential expansion condition, while any other clamps between adjacent trays remain in the circumferential contraction condition.

17. The method as described in claim 16 further comprises the step of supplying heat energy to at least the first tray and the second tray, wherein the heat energy supplied to the first tray is different from the heat energy supplied to the second tray.

18. The method as described in claim 16 further comprises the step of extending a sensor bar having at least one sensor therein through at least one of the first tray and the second tray.

19. The method as described in claim 17 further comprises the step of: supplying heat energy from a location outside the tray to at least the first tray and the second tray.

20. The method as described in claim 17 further comprises the step of: supplying heat energy from one location within the tray to at least the first tray and the second tray.

21. A gas source configured to release a gas from a precursor source material, the gas source comprising: at least one tray, a base, and a cover, wherein the at least one tray includes a heater groove; at least one circumferential clamp extending around a portion of the tray and one of the base and the cover, and releasably connecting the tray to one of the cover and the base.

22. The gas source as described in claim 21, wherein the clamp further comprises a heating element.

23. A gas source configured to release a gas from a precursor source material, the gas source comprising: at least one tray, a base, and a cover, the tray including a precursor receiving portion, wherein the precursor receiving portion includes a heater groove; and a heater embedded in the precursor receiving portion.

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