Global Photomask Market Expected to Reach $4.97 Billion by 2026

According to a new report published by Allied Market Research, titled, "Photomask Market by Product, Mask Shop Type, and Application: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2019-2026," the global photomask market size was valued at $4.00 billion in 2018, and is projected to reach $4.97 billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 2.5% from 2019 to 2026.

Photomask is a procedure of using lithography techniques to transfer display patterns and circuits onto semiconductors, microelectromechanical systems, and displays. Photomask contains the pattern of integrated circuits, and they have become smaller and more complex to accurately transfer the pattern to silicon wafer.  It is also projected onto wafers in lithography process to express the layout of one layer of integrated circuits.

Furthermore, the sizes of the mask are typically used in lithography tools that will expose 300mm and 200mm wafers. In addition, the photomask is comprised of transparent substrates including glass or fused silica that shows opaque coating on surfaces, where the microscopic pattern has fixed, and leaves some regions transparent and others opaque. The semiconductor application is expected to continue dominance on the growth of the global photomask market.

Rise in adoption of consumer electronic products, surge in usage of automated systems across various industry verticals, and increase in demand for the semiconductors are the major factors that drive the growth of the photomask market. Furthermore, increase in focus toward advancement in technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT) fuel the growth of the photomask market. However, complexity in photomask fabrication process and high cost associated with photomask manufacturing hamper the market growth.

During the lithography process, the wafer gets exposed to ultraviolet laser beam, in which the ultraviolet laser beam passes through photomask layer without a pattern and is irradiated onto photoresist on a wafer. Thus, photomasks are used during the semiconductor manufacturing process making it an important component. However, due to the irregularity in demand-supply gap, the market is expected to experience sluggish growth over the next few years.

Region-wise, the photomask industry trends are analyzed across North America Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA. Moreover, Asia-Pacific is the major revenue contributor, owing to the government initiatives and high demand for semiconductor. The photomask market growth in the region is attributed to factors such as higher demand and consumption of photomasks in semiconductor industry.

In August 2017, Photronics entered into an agreement with Hefei State High-tech Industry Development Zone (High-tech Zone), to established manufacturing facility in China. This agreement builds and operate facility to engaged in research and development, manufacture and sale of FPD photomasks.

According to Ankit Prajapati, Lead Analyst, Semiconductor and Electronics at Allied Market Research, “In 2018, the display segment dominated the photomask market. However, the master mask segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. By application, display and MEMS segment is anticipated to dominate the market throughout the forecast period (2019–2026). Moreover, the captive mask shop segment dominates the overall tre, in terms of mask type.”

Key Finding of The Photomask Market:

• In terms of revenue, captive mask contributed the maximum photomask market size in 2018 and is expected to maintain its lead throughout the forecast period.
• The displays segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period.
• In 2018, Asia-Pacific is anticipated to exhibit the highest CAGR during the forecast period.

By region, the global photomask market trends are analyzed across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA. In 2018, in terms of revenue, Asia-Pacific accounted for nearly half of the photomask market share, and is expected to retain its dominant position, owing to the presence of well-established semiconductor companies, government initiatives.

The major companies profiled in the report include Applied Materials, Inc., SK-Electronics, Advanced Reproductions Corporation, Photronics, LG Innotek, Infinite Graphics Incorporated, Compugraphics Photomask Solutions, Nippon Filcon, HTA Photomask, and Hoya Corporation.