Method of layout compaction

A method of layout compaction, comprising:

• a compaction control step for generating a compaction condition appropriate to an input layout pattern;
• an optical proximity correction condition generation step for generating an optical proximity correction condition taking account of the compaction condition generated in the compaction control step;
• a layout compaction step for compacting the input layout pattern based on the compaction condition and generating an compacted layout pattern;
• a first verification step for receiving the input layout pattern and the compacted layout pattern as data, verifying that the compacted layout pattern performs a proper circuit operation by comparing the input layout pattern and the compacted layout pattern, in case where any problem is detected, a first error data is outputted;
• an optical proximity correction step for carrying out an optical proximity correction based on the optical proximity correction condition on the compacted layout pattern and generating an optical proximity corrected layout pattern by;
• and
• a second verification step for receiving the compacted layout pattern and the optical proximity corrected layout pattern as data, obtaining a finish pattern to be formed on a wafer by the optical proximity corrected layout pattern, and verifying that the optical proximity corrected layout pattern is properly formed by comparing the compacted layout pattern and the finish pattern, in case where any problem is detected
• a second error data is outputted, wherein the generation of the compaction condition in the compaction control step is controlled based on the first error data and the second error data.