Patent ID: 8316329

Claim:
A method comprising: receiving, by a lithographic apparatus, a die pattern and in-scribe patterns, wherein the die pattern has a first portion and a second portion for double patterning; determining which of the in-scribe patterns are to be double patterned; forming a first sub-array comprising a plurality of the first portions and a second sub-array comprising a plurality of the second portions; determining placements in the first sub-array and the second sub-array for split versions of the in-scribe patterns that are to be double patterned; and for each of the in-scribe patterns that is not to be double patterned, determining a placement in either the first sub-array or the second sub-array for the each of the in-scribe patterns and position for a blank in the other of the first sub-array or the second sub-array, wherein the blank is positioned to prevent a target region that is exposed to the each of the in-scribe patterns during a first part of the double patterning from being exposed during a second part of the double patterning; and merging the first sub-array and the second sub-array to generate a file for printing a reticle.