A method and apparatus are disclosed to aid a transceiver chip, in a serial data communications system, in recovering from a system-side, out-bound data clocking problem. A variety of specifically designed surgical instruments are utilized to perform this operative procedure. A halide is formed by reaction between a halogen and a metal donor containing aluminum, then the halide is transported by a carrier gas in order to come into contact with the metal part, wherein the metal component has first, before the implementation of the process, been surface-enriched with aluminum in order to serve as an aluminum donor.