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NPI Engineer
The Role
We are seeking a highly skilled and motivated Process Engineering expert in Photonics to own the manufacturing process development for our state-of-the-art photonic products. This is a hands-on role responsible for bridging the gap between design and high-volume production.
You will be a technical expert for our assembly and packaging processes, with a special focus on Silicon Photonics devices. Your primary mission will be to develop robust, scalable, and cost-effective manufacturing processes and transfer them successfully to our production partners. If you are a data-driven engineer who thrives on solving complex manufacturing challenges, this is the role for you.
What You'll Do (Responsibilities)
- Process Development & Optimization: Lead the hands-on development, characterization, and optimization of core assembly processes, including precision die bonding, wire bonding, and active/passive optical alignment.
- High-Volume Scalability: Design, develop, and qualify manufacturing processes and equipment with a clear path to ramping to high-volume manufacturing (HVM). Define equipment specifications and drive the design of custom fixtures and tooling.
- Statistical Process Control (SPC): Implement and manage SPC for critical process parameters. Use statistical methods (DOE, Cp/Cpk analysis) to monitor process health, drive yield improvements, and ensure manufacturability.
- Silicon Photonics Assembly: Serve as the subject matter expert for the unique challenges associated with Silicon Photonics device assembly, including fiber attach, thermal management, and high-density interconnects.
- Design for Manufacturability (DFM): Work closely with the design engineering team to provide critical DFM feedback, ensuring that new products are designed for robust, high-yield manufacturing.
- Yield Improvement: Drive root cause analysis for yield excursions and process failures. Implement robust corrective and preventative actions to achieve and exceed yield targets.
- Manufacturing Transfer: Create comprehensive documentation (work instructions, control plans, PFMEAs) and lead the technical transfer of new products and processes to our contract manufacturing (CM) partners.
What You'll Bring (Qualifications)
Minimum Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, or a related technical field.
- 5+ years of experience in a process engineering or NPI role within the semiconductor, electronics, or photonics packaging industry.
- Direct, hands-on experience developing and sustaining key assembly processes such as precision die bonding, wire bonding, optical alignment and wafer level processing
- Demonstrated experience working with Silicon Photonics devices and their associated assembly and packaging processes.
- Proficiency in applying Statistical Process Control (SPC) and Design of Experiments (DOE) to solve manufacturing problems.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Master’s degree or PhD in a relevant technical discipline.
- A proven track record of successfully developing manufacturing processes and ramping them into high-volume manufacturing.
- Deep expertise in materials (e.g., epoxies, solders) and characterization techniques used in microelectronic and photonic assembly.
- Experience specifying, sourcing, and qualifying automated or semi-automated manufacturing equipment.
- Experience with statistical analysis software such as JMP or Minitab.
- Experience working with and managing offshore contract manufacturers (CMs).
- Strong problem-solving skills and a hands-on, data-driven approach.
Senior Firmware Validation & Design Engineer
The Role
We are seeking a Senior Firmware Validation Engineer with a builder’s mindset. While your primary mission is to ensure the integrity of our optical modules through rigorous testing, you won't just be finding bugs — you'll be invited to help squash them. This role offers the unique opportunity to contribute directly to firmware development, making it ideal for a validation expert who wants to keep their coding skills sharp and influence the product architecture.
Key Responsibilities
- Test Strategy & Design: Analyze product requirements and functional specifications to design comprehensive test plans and detailed test cases for firmware validation.
- Development Contribution: Collaborate with the design team to write and optimize firmware code, implement bug fixes, and develop new features for optical control.
- Test Case Architecture: Transform complex technical requirements into sophisticated Python-based automation frameworks.
- Cross-Functional Debugging: Lead root-cause analysis sessions, bridging the gap between hardware, firmware, and optical physics.
- Agile Execution: Rapidly pivot between high-priority tasks in a fast-paced environment where requirements and hardware revisions evolve quickly.
Required Qualifications
- Experience: 5+ years in firmware validation or embedded software development.
- Technical Core: Bachelor’s degree in EE or CE and a penchant for solving complex technical problems.
- Scripting & Tooling: Expert-level Python skills for automation. Experience with C/C++ is required for your contributions to the firmware codebase.
- Lab Skills: Hands-on experience with hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing and standard lab equipment (Oscilloscopes, Optical Spectrum Analyzers, BERTs).
- Mindset: A "fail fast, learn faster" attitude. You must be highly flexible and thrive in a high-pressure, rapid-growth setting.
- Automation: Proven track record of building automated test benches from scratch to validate hardware/firmware interactions.
Preferred Qualifications
Optics: Familiarity with Silicon Photonics or Optical Transceivers is highly desirable.
MCU: Prior experience with STM32 family of microcontrollers is a plus.
What Makes You a Good Fit?
"You don't just follow a checklist; you anticipate where the system might fail and have the technical chops to suggest—or implement—the solution. You are comfortable with ambiguity and can re-prioritize your day as project needs shift."
Why Join Us?
This isn't a siloed role. You will have a seat at the table during the entire development lifecycle, from initial concept to final module deployment, working at the cutting edge of optical interconnect technology.
Director of Module Development
Role Overview
We’re looking for a senior leader to drive Module Development for next-generation ELSFP external laser modules. This person will own the full development of highly integrated modules that bring together PCB electronics, photonics, packaging, and thermal design into a product that can scale in manufacturing.
The role requires leading cross-functional engineering teams to deliver high-performance, low-noise, and thermally stable laser modules from early concept through volume production, while also shaping the architecture and development path for future generations.
Key Responsibilities
Module Architecture & Development
- Own end-to-end module development, including:
- PCB design for laser drivers, TEC control, and monitoring circuits
- Optical subassemblies and laser integration
- Mechanical packaging and thermal design
- Define overall module architecture and make design trade-offs across performance, cost, power, and manufacturability
- Drive tight optical, electrical, and thermal co-design within ELSFP constraints
Engineering Leadership
- Build and lead a multidisciplinary module development team across:
- PCB / electronics
- Mechanical / thermal engineering
- Test and validation
- Set technical direction, lead design reviews, and maintain a high bar for execution
- Establish strong practices for design, integration, debug, and validation
Execution & Delivery
- Drive development from prototype through qualification (EVT/DVT/PVT) and production ramp
- Partner closely with TPM and operations to deliver on schedule
- Own key module metrics including noise, stability, yield, reliability, and cost
PCB & Electronics
- Oversee development of low-noise, high-performance PCBs that are critical to laser stability
- Ensure strong power integrity, signal integrity, and EMI performance
- Guide integration of:
- Laser drivers
- TEC controllers and thermal feedback loops
- Photodiode sensing and control systems
Manufacturing & Supply Chain
- Define module assembly flow, test strategy, and calibration processes
- Work closely with CMs, ODMs, and suppliers on:
- PCB fabrication and assembly
- Laser and optical component sourcing
- Module packaging and alignment
- Drive DFM/DFT, yield improvement, and cost reduction
Reliability & Quality
- Ensure compliance with reliability and qualification requirements
- Lead failure analysis and root-cause resolution across module and PCB-related issues
Required Qualifications
- BS or MS in Electrical Engineering, Photonics, Physics, or a related field
- 12–15+ years of experience in optical modules or other complex hardware systems
- 5+ years of leadership experience in module, subsystem, or product development
- Strong technical depth in:
- PCB design, including mixed-signal, low-noise, PI/SI considerations
- Module and system integration
- Proven track record of bringing hardware products into volume production
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with ELSFP, QSFP-DD, CFP2, or similar optical modules
- Background in tunable or coherent laser systems
- Familiarity with:
- TEC-based thermal control
- Optical packaging and alignment
- Stabilization control loops and supporting firmware
- Experience working in startup or fast-scaling environments
Thermal Engineer
Xscape Photonics is a cutting-edge technology company developing advanced photonic systems for high-performance computing and communication applications. Our work focuses on enabling next-generation optical interconnects through innovative integration of photonics, electronics, and packaging technologies. We are building highly efficient, scalable solutions where thermal management plays a critical role in performance, reliability, and product success.
We are seeking a motivated Thermal Engineer with 1–3 years of experience to support the design, simulation, and testing of thermal solutions for photonic and electronic systems. This role involves developing cooling strategies for sensitive optical and electronic components using technologies such as thermoelectric coolers (TECs), thermal interface materials (TIMs), heat spreaders, vapor chamber along with air and liquid cooling systems.
You will work closely with cross-functional teams including optical, mechanical, electrical, packaging, firmware, control and reliability engineers to ensure robust thermal performance across a range of operating conditions.
Key Responsibilities
- Design and analyze thermal management solutions for photonic devices and systems
- Develop cooling strategies using:
- Thermoelectric coolers (TECs)
- Thermal interface materials (TIMs)
- Heat spreaders and heat sinks
- Air cooling and liquid cooling approaches
- Perform thermal simulations to predict temperature distribution, heat flow, and thermal crosstalk
- Conduct thermal and fluid experiments to validate designs and models
- Set up and execute lab testing using:
- Thermocouples and temperature sensors
- IR cameras for thermal imaging
- Data acquisition systems (e.g., LabVIEW-based setups)
- Analyze test data and correlate with simulation results
- Support design optimization for performance, reliability, and manufacturability
- Thermal review and documentation of results with the team members
Required Qualifications
- Master’s or PhD in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field with focus on heat transfer and fluid mechanics
- 1–3 years of experience in thermal engineering or related field preferably in photonics applications
- Strong fundamentals in heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation) and fluid flow
- Experience of CFD simulation tools for thermal analysis
- Hands-on experience with thermal testing and instrumentation
Preferred Skills
- Experience with simulation tools such as:
- Ansys Icepack / Ansys Electronics Desktop
- Ansys Mechanical
- SolidWorks (CAD and thermal modules)
- Programming and data analysis skills:
- MATLAB
- Python scripting for test automation and data processing
- Familiarity with electronics or photonics packaging is a plus
- Understanding of thermal reliability and material behavior (TIMs, interfaces, etc.)
What We Offer
- Opportunity to work on advanced photonics and thermal challenges
- Collaborative and innovative work environment
- Competitive salary and benefits
- Career growth in a rapidly evolving technology space
Control and Test Engineer
Job Summary
Xscape Photonics is seeking a talented professional to develop, implement, and validate control algorithms for integrated photonic circuits. This role involves modelling photonic circuits, analyzing their behavior, designing robust control algorithms to ensure optical performance, and validating system functionality.
The ideal candidate will have a strong background in photonics with proven experience in developing control algorithms and writing test scripts for integrated systems. Proficiency in working hands-on with printed circuit boards and embedded firmware is highly desirable.
Key Responsibilities
● Design and implement comprehensive test plans, scripts, methodologies, and protocols for control system validation.
● Develop and implement control algorithms for initialization and stabilization of photonic components including lasers, ring modulators, MZI based multiplexer/demultiplexers, and ring-based filters.
● Implement photonics system control consisting of multiple control loops across various components, collaborating closely with photonic, hardware and firmware engineers. ● Perform rigorous control system validation tests to assess signal quality and system performance under various environmental stimulus.
● Utilize data analysis and statistical data visualization techniques to extract insights from measurement data.
● Collaborate with cross-functional teams to provide technical expertise and drive innovation in product development.
Qualifications
● Proficiency in control theory and implementation methodology in software and hardware including PID control theory and signal processing techniques.
● Proficiency in optical test equipment, such as optical spectrum analyzers, optical power meters, and interferometers.
● Proficiency in scripting test procedures using Python, or similar tools, to automate execution on lab equipment and custom hardware.
● In-depth knowledge of photonic components and systems, including lasers, optical amplifiers, modulators, optical filters, and photodetectors.
● Familiarity with optical simulation and modeling tools for system design and analysis. ● Strong communication and collaboration skills.
● Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills.
● Master's degree in Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field with minimum of 5 years of industry experience or PhD in Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field with minimum of 2 years of industry experience.
Pic Test Lead
Senior PIC Test Engineer
Role Overview
We are seeking an experienced PIC Test Engineer with deep expertise in wafer-level optical and electrical test for Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs). This role will own the test strategy and execution across the full product lifecycle—from early silicon bring-up through high-volume manufacturing (HVM).
The ideal candidate is a recognized technical authority in test architecture, PIC Design-for-Test (DFT), yield learning, and factory scalability, with proven leadership in driving robust wafer-level test solutions across multiple technology nodes and product families.
Key Responsibilities
Wafer-Level Test Strategy & Architecture
- Define and own the wafer-level PIC test roadmap across multiple product lines and technology platforms.
- Architect scalable, high-throughput optical + electrical wafer probe solutions, balancing alignment accuracy, probe stability, and test time.
- Establish release criteria, guard-banding strategy, and wafer test coverage models aligned with product requirements.
First Silicon Bring-Up & Test Content Development
- Lead first-silicon bring-up efforts, including test content definition, limit setting, and characterization flows.
- Drive rapid yield-learning loops in partnership with design, process integration, and fabrication teams.
- Enable fast debug and iteration during early node transitions and new platform ramps.
DFT & PDK Collaboration
- Influence PIC Design-for-Test features and PDK structures to improve wafer-level scalability, including:
- On-chip monitors
- Loopback paths
- Test waveguides
- Calibration structures
- Partner with design teams to embed manufacturable test hooks early in the development cycle.
Yield Ownership & Data-Driven Analysis
- Own wafer-level yield, parametric distributions, and systematic defect learning.
- Perform advanced spatial analytics using wafer maps and statistical methods to separate random vs systematic process issues.
- Lead root-cause investigations related to coupling variation, lithography bias, and process drift.
Manufacturing Readiness & Factory Scale-Up
- Establish golden wafer / golden die methodologies for production stability and tool correlation.
- Partner with foundries and OSATs to qualify wafer-level optical probe infrastructure.
- Drive successful transfer of test flows into volume manufacturing environments with strong cross-tool correlation.
Technical Leadership & Team Development
- Serve as the technical escalation point during yield crises and manufacturing transitions.
- Mentor and develop junior engineers, setting engineering standards and best practices across wafer-level test programs.
- Multiply organizational impact through scalable infrastructure, DFT influence, and test standardization.
Qualifications
Required
- 10+ years of experience in PIC test engineering, wafer-level probing, or photonics manufacturing test.
- Proven ownership of wafer-level optical/electrical test strategy from R&D through HVM.
- Expertise in:
- Wafer-level optical probing
- Probe card qualification
- Yield learning and spatial analysis
- Test time optimization
- Foundry engagement and factory transfer
Preferred
- Experience with high-speed optical and electrical testing of photonic integrated circuits or optical transceivers.
- Experience influencing PIC DFT and collaborating closely with PDK development teams.
- Strong background in high-volume semiconductor or photonics manufacturing ecosystems.
- Demonstrated leadership in scaling test infrastructure across multiple nodes and product families.
Principal System Validation Engineer
Design, execute engineering validation testing, design validation testing for photonic systems and components.
Master’s in Electrical Eng or related + 1 yr exp as Test Engineer or related position in photonic device engineering.
Must have 1 yr exp in testing and specs for photonics-based AI platforms, photonics chiplet communication fabric, critical circuit functionality.
Salary: $250,000 per year
Telecommuting permitted, work may occur from anywhere in U.S.
To apply, mail resume to:
Xscape Photonics
Attn: Jainy Sanghvi
3110 CoronadoDrive
Santa Clara, CA 95054
Use Ref. Code XP1.
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