Photomask including transfer patterns for reducing a thermal stress

Abstract

A photomask includes a light transmission substrate, a plurality of pattern regions disposed over the light transmission substrate, a shape of the plurality of pattern regions being transferred onto a wafer during an exposure process, and a light blocking region surrounding the plurality of pattern regions. Each of the plurality of pattern regions is a light transmitting region that exposes a portion of the light transmission substrate. The light blocking region includes first light blocking patterns that respectively surround the plurality of pattern regions to have closed loop shapes and second light blocking patterns that are disposed between adjacent first light blocking patterns, adjacent second light blocking patterns being spaced apart from each other by a first distance in a first direction. And the first light blocking patterns have a first thickness and the second light blocking patterns have a second thickness which is smaller than the first thickness.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.