Buffer chamber and substrate processing apparatus including the same

A buffer chamber for temporarily storing a substrate, the buffer chamber comprising:

• a housing providing an inner space;
• a support unit including a plurality of support plates supporting a substrate in the inner space;
• a plurality of shower plates having a plurality of injection holes for injecting the gas to the substrate supported by the support unit;
• and
• a gas supply unit for supplying the gas to the shower plate, and
• the support plates are provided in a stacked structure, and
• each of the shower plates is provided to correspond to each of the support plates.

An apparatus for processing a substrate, the apparatus comprising:

• an index module for unloading a substrate from a container in which the substrate is accommodated or loads the substrate into the container;
• a processing module for processing a substrate;
• and
• a buffer chamber for temporarily storing a substrate,
• wherein the index module includes:
• a load port on which the container in which the substrate is accommodated is placed;
• and
• an index robot for transferring the substrate from the container placed on the load port to the processing module, and accommodating the substrate completely processed in the processing module in the container placed on the load port, and
• the processing module includes:
• a process chamber for processing the substrate;
• and
• a transfer chamber including a transfer robot that loads the substrate into the process chamber or unloads the substrate from the process chamber,
• the buffer chamber includes:
• a housing providing an inner space;
• a support unit for supporting the substrate in the inner space;
• a plurality of shower plates having a plurality of injection holes for injecting gas to the substrate supported by the support unit;
• and
• a gas supply unit for supplying the gas to the shower plate, and
• the support unit includes a plurality of support plates that supports the substrate and is provided in a stacked structure,
• the gas has a lower humidity than a surrounding atmosphere of the index robot or the transfer robot,
• the shower plate is provided to correspond to each support plate, and includes:
• an injection part for injecting the gas into the substrate supported on the support plate;
• and
• a connection part connecting the gas supply unit and the injection part;
• and
• a plurality of guide members installed inside the connection part and the injection part and arranged to have a concentric pattern based on a center of the injection part,
• the connection part is provided on a side of the injection part, and
• a diameter of the injection part is smaller than a diameter of the support plate.