Market Dynamics
Introduction
Photomasks are high-precision plates used during semiconductor lithography to project circuit patterns onto silicon wafers. They act as templates that define the shapes of transistors, wiring, and other device features across multiple layers of a chip. Made using materials such as quartz and chrome for DUV masks and multilayer Mo/Si stacks for EUV masks, photomasks ensure extremely accurate pattern transfer as devices scale to advanced technology nodes.
Photomasks are essential in manufacturing logic, memory, analog, and display devices, as each wafer requires many different masks throughout the production process. As demand grows for advanced chips used in smartphones, data centres, automotive electronics, and AI hardware, photomasks play a critical role in enabling smaller geometries, multi-patterning, and EUV lithography. This makes photomasks a core component of the global semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem.
Recent Market Developments:
A considerable number of strategic alliances, market development, etc., have been performed over the past few years:
- In 2024, Photronics announced expansion of its EUV and advanced DUV photomask production capacity in both the U.S. and Taiwan, supported by new investments in advanced e-beam writers and inspection systems. This expansion will enhance Photronics' capacity to meet the growing demand for EUV masks and support the needs of cutting-edge logic and memory customers.
- In December 2023, Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (DNP) successfully established a photomask manufacturing process capable of accommodating the 3-nanometer (10-9 meter) lithography process that supports Extreme Ultra-Violet (EUV) lithography, the forward-looking process for semiconductor manufacturing.
Recent JVs, acquisitions, mergers:
- In 2024, Toppan Photomask entered a five-year joint R&D agreement with IBM, which involves the development of EUV and High-NA EUV photomasks with a target of 2 nm logic and future nodes. This development is to take place in the shared facilities of Albany Nano Tech (USA) and Toppan Asaka Plant in Japan.
- In 2023, DNP establishes a joint development framework with imec to develop next-gen EUV photomasks for 3nm and 2nm class technologies.
Market Segments' Analysis
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Segmentations
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List of Sub-Segments
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Segments with High-Growth Opportunity
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Shop Analysis
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Captive and Merchant
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Captive is likely to be the faster-growing category due to the rising share of fabless semiconductor companies and due to expansion of outsourced foundry manufacturing.
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Usage Analysis
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IC and FPD
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IC is expected to be a faster growing which is driven by increased demand for advanced automotive chips, as well as the higher demand for memory, logic, and AI processors.
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Material Analysis
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Quartz Glass + Chrome, Molybdenum Silicide, and Multilayer Mo/Si Stack
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The multilayer Mo/Si stack is expected to be the most preferred material due to the rapid adoption of the EUV mask for cutting-edge logic and memory.
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Type
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Binary Mask, Phase-Shift Mask (PSM), and EUV Mask
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EUV Mask is likely to be the fastest-growing type because advanced logic and memory manufacturers are increasingly using EUV masks for their latest technology nodes.
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Technology / Light Source Analysis
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DUV (248 nm, 193 nm), EUV (13.5 nm, reflective), and Others (i-line, g-line, etc.)
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EUV (13.5 nm) is expected to be the fastest-growing technology as advanced semiconductor manufacturing is quickly shifting to EUV-based patterning.
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Region Analysis
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North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and The Rest of the World
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Asia-Pacific is anticipated to maintain its dominance as it hosts the highest concentration of semiconductor manufacturing companies.
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By Shop
“The captive is likely to be a larger category because major semiconductor fabs produce masks internally to protect design IP, maintain tight process control, and ensure faster turnaround for advanced-node production.”
By shop type the market is segmented into two categories captive and merchant where the captive is the dominant shop type because leading semiconductor manufacturers rely on in-house mask production to ensure stricter process uniformity, faster engineering cycles, and seamless integration with their lithography workflows. The high mask intensity of advanced-node IC fabrication keeps internal mask shops operating at a large scale, giving the captive segment a bigger overall share of the market. In contrast, the merchant segment is the faster growing because the rise of fabless chip companies, increasing outsourcing to foundries, and the growing complexity of EUV and multi-patterned DUV masks are driving more manufacturers to rely on external mask suppliers, who can scale capacity faster and provide advanced capabilities to a broader customer base.
By Use
“IC is expected to be the largest as well as the faster-growing market categories over the years.”
By use type, the market is divided into two categories IC and FPD where, IC is the larger end-use segment driven by the rising complexity and volume of semiconductor devices especially logic, memory, and high-performance processors, require far more photomasks per product than displays or other applications, with complex multi-layer DUV and EUV patterning driving the highest mask consumption. The IC segment is also the faster growing because advanced logic and memory manufacturers are continuously migrating to smaller nodes, increasing the number of DUV and EUV layers, and raising the demand for high-value mask sets.
By Material
“Quartz Glass + Chrome is likely to be the most preferred material of the market over the coming years.”
By material type the market is segmented into three segments Quartz Glass + Chrome, Molybdenum Silicide, and Multilayer Mo/Si Stack where Quartz Glass + Chrome is the largest material segment because it is used in the production of binary masks, which remain the most widely used mask type for mature-node and high-volume semiconductor manufacturing. Their broad application across automotive, consumer electronics, and industrial chips keeps this material dominant. In contrast, Multilayer Mo/Si stacks are the fastest-growing material segment because they are exclusively used for EUV masks, and the rapid shift of advanced logic and memory production toward EUV lithography significantly accelerates demand for these high-value reflective multilayer materials.
By Type Analysis
“Binary masks are likely to be the dominant type of the photomask market during the study period.”
By mask type the market is divided into three segments binary mask, phase-shift mask (PSM), and EUV mask where binary masks is the dominant segment as they are widely used across mature-node and high-volume semiconductor production, supporting applications such as automotive, consumer electronics, power devices, and industrial chips where DUV, i-line, and g-line lithography dominate. Their lower cost, simpler structure, and compatibility with the massive global installed base keep them the most heavily consumed mask type. On the other hand, EUV masks are the segment currently growing the most, as manufacturers of advanced logic and memory devices for new cutting-edge technology are rapidly adopting EUV lithography. New technology generations require more high-value, reflective masks to be produced to accommodate the increasing number of EUV layers.
By Technology / Light Source Analysis
“DUV is anticipated to be the widely used technology of the market because most semiconductor manufacturing, especially mature-node logic, analog, power devices, and mainstream memory, still relies heavily on DUV lithography.”
By Technology the market is divided into three segments DUV (248 nm, 193 nm), EUV (13.5 nm, reflective), and Others (i-line, g-line, etc.) where DUV is the dominant technology in the photomask market because 193 nm and 248 nm lithography continue to be the foundation of global semiconductor manufacturing, especially across mature, mid-range, and high-volume nodes. Most of the chips used in automotive electronics, consumer devices, power semiconductors, IoT components, and industrial applications are still produced using DUV-based patterning, which requires large quantities of binary and phase-shift masks. DUV also remains essential even in advanced fabs, as many non-critical layers at leading-edge nodes still rely on ArF and KrF exposure. Its broad applicability, lower cost, and massive installed base ensure that DUV remains the dominant technology, even as EUV adoption grows.
Regional Analysis
“Asia-Pacific is anticipated to be the largest and fastest-growing market for the photomasks during the study period.”
Asia-Pacific is the dominant region in the photomask market because it hosts the world’s largest concentration of semiconductor manufacturing, with rapid expansion in advanced-node logic, memory, and foundry capacity driving unprecedented demand for photomasks. Countries such as China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan are leading global chip production and are heavily investing in new fabs, EUV and DUV lithography tools, and technology upgrades, significantly boosting the requirement for high-volume and advanced photomask sets across the region.
Report Features
This report provides market intelligence most comprehensively. The report structure has been kept so that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights into market dynamics and will enable strategic decision-making for existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market. The following are the key features of the report:
- Market structure: Overview, industry life cycle analysis, supply chain analysis.
- Market environment analysis: Growth drivers and constraints, Porter’s five forces analysis, SWOT analysis.
- Market trend and forecast analysis.
- Market segment trend and forecast.
- Competitive landscape and dynamics: Market share, Service portfolio, New Product Launches, etc.
- COVID-19 impact and its recovery curve.
- Attractive market segments and associated growth opportunities.
- Emerging trends.
- Strategic growth opportunities for the existing and new players.
- Key success factors.
The global photomask market is segmented into the following categories.
Photomask Market, by Shop Analysis
- Captive (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- Merchant (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
Photomask Market, by Use
- IC (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- FPD (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
Photomask Market, by Material
- Quartz Glass + Chrome (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- Molybdenum Silicide (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- Multilayer Mo/Si Stack (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
Photomask Market, by Type
- Binary Mask (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- Phase-Shift Mask (PSM) (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- EUV Mask (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
Photomask Market, by Technology / Light Source Analysis
- DUV (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- EUV (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
- Others (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
Photomask Market by Region
- North America (Country Analysis: The USA, and the Rest of America)
- Europe (Country Analysis: Germany, France, The UK, Italy, and the Rest of Europe)
- Asia-Pacific (Country Analysis: China, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and the Rest of Asia-Pacific)
- Rest of the World (Country Analysis: Israel and Others)
