Patent ID: 8518482
Filing Date: 2013-08-27
Classification: C23C,F16J,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A vapor phase reagent dispensing apparatus comprising: a vessel which comprises a removable top wall member, a sidewall member and a bottom wall member configured to form an internal vessel compartment to hold a source chemical up to a fill level and to additionally define an inner gas volume above the fill level; said sidewall member having a protuberance that extends into the internal vessel compartment adjacent to the top wall member; said top wall member and said sidewall member having opposing flat surfaces, wherein the opposing flat surfaces are optionally in contact with one another; fastening means for securing said top wall member to said sidewall member through the opposing flat surfaces that are optionally in contact with one another; said top wall member and said protuberance having opposing flat surfaces, wherein the opposing flat surfaces are not in contact with one another and at least a portion of the opposing flat surfaces are hardened; a metal seal aligned and in contact with the hardened opposing flat surfaces of said top wall member and said protuberance; said bottom wall member having a main floor surface containing a sump cavity therein extending downwardly from the main floor surface, the sump cavity being bounded at its lower end by a sub-floor surface, with at least a portion of the sump cavity being centrally located on the bottom wall member and at least a portion of the sump cavity being non-centrally located on the bottom wall member; a temperature sensor extending from an upper end exterior of the vessel through a centrally located portion of the top wall member and generally vertically downwardly through the inner gas volume into the source chemical to a lower end of that portion of the sump cavity centrally located on the bottom wall member, with the lower end of the temperature sensor being located in non-interfering proximity to the sub-floor surface of the sump cavity; a source chemical level sensor extending from an upper end exterior of the vessel through a non-centrally located portion of the top wall member and generally vertically downwardly through the inner gas volume into the source chemical to a lower end of that portion of the sump cavity non-centrally located on the bottom wall member, with the lower end of the source chemical level sensor being located in non-interfering proximity to the sub-floor surface of the sump cavity; the temperature sensor being operatively arranged in the sump cavity to determine the temperature of source chemical in the vessel, the source chemical level sensor being operatively arranged in the sump cavity to determine the level of source chemical in the vessel, the temperature sensor and source chemical level sensor being located in non-interfering proximity to each other in the sump cavity, with the lower end of the temperature sensor being located at the same or closer proximity to the sub-floor surface of the sump cavity in relation to the lower end of the source chemical level sensor, and the temperature sensor and source chemical level sensor being in source chemical flow communication in the sump cavity; and a non-centrally located portion of the top wall member having a carrier gas feed inlet opening comprising a bubbler tube that extends through the inner gas volume into the source chemical and through which said carrier gas can be bubbled into the source chemical to cause at least a portion of source chemical vapor to become entrained in said carrier gas to produce a flow of vapor phase reagent to said inner gas volume above the fill level, said bubbler tube having an inlet end adjacent to the top wall member and an outlet end adjacent to the bottom wall member; and a non-centrally located portion of the top wall member having a vapor phase reagent outlet opening through which said vapor phase reagent can be dispensed from said apparatus; wherein said hardened opposing flat surfaces of said top wall member and said protuberance have a hardness greater than the hardness of said metal seal.