What will be the approximate cost per mold? How many wafers can be bumped per mold before it needs to be replaced?
Mold cost will depend on cavity density, cavity size and number of molds ordered. Mold pricing is available through mold suppliers. The cost of mold is expected to contribute approximately 10% of the per wafer bumping cost. Mold fill and transfer to wafers have been proven to hundreds of times. The only applicable wear-out mechanism is the chemical cleaning of the molds. As an example: If a mold were to cost $1000 and were to be used 500 times, the per wafer cost contribution of the mold will be $2.
