Applications Engineering, Principal Engineer

You are the engineer who gets called when a customer issue is too complex for standard support, not because you know everything, but because you ask the right questions and do not stop until the root cause is clear. You have debugged production flows at 2am and turned those lessons into specifications that R&D can actually build from. Python and C++ are tools you use daily, not skills you list aspirationally.

Working across time zones and shifting priorities does not rattle you. You know how to prioritize, when to escalate, and how to explain a technical tradeoff to a customer engineer in terms that land. At Synopsys, you will work on Proteus OPC, MEC, and RET solutions that define how the semiconductor industry manufactures chips at the edge of physics., * Partner directly with leading edge semiconductor customers and internal R&D to develop, prototype, and deploy new OPC, MEC, and RET features including machine learning based solutions

• Create and review functional specifications for new capabilities, translating customer requirements and manufacturing constraints into buildable features
• Prototype computational lithography solutions in Python and C++, then collaborate with R&D to move them from proof of concept to production release
• Resolve complex customer issues that escalate beyond field support, working with FAEs to debug production flows and deliver root cause analysis
• Develop and accelerate GPU based computational lithography solutions to meet performance and scalability requirements
• Build training materials and deliver technical training to applications engineers and customer teams on Proteus toolsets
• Collaborate with technical publications to ensure product documentation reflects real world usage and customer workflows, * Enable leading edge semiconductor manufacturers to adopt next generation lithography techniques that directly affect yield and time to market
• Accelerate the productization of machine learning based computational lithography features by bridging the gap between research and deployable solutions
• Reduce customer escalation cycles by solving the hardest technical problems before they become blockers in production
• Improve field team effectiveness by creating training and documentation that reflects how customers actually use the tools
• Drive GPU adoption in computational lithography workflows, unlocking performance gains that change what customers can simulate in acceptable timeframes
• Shape the Proteus product roadmap by translating real customer pain points into specifications that R&D can prioritize and build
• Strengthen customer relationships by being the engineer they trust when the stakes are highest

You have spent years deep in computational lithography, and you know that the real work starts after the algorithm is written. Getting a leading edge semiconductor manufacturer to trust a new OPC flow or adopt a machine learning feature means understanding their process, their constraints, and the three things they are not telling you in the first meeting. You move easily between customer sites, R&D engineering reviews, and your own prototyping work without losing context., * Bachelor’s, Master’s, or Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, or related field

• 10+ years of hands-on experience in semiconductor manufacturing or computational lithography, working with OPC, RET, or related resolution enhancement techniques
• Strong proficiency in Python and C++ for prototyping, automation, and performance critical work
• Experience with HPC technologies and parallel computing environments used in semiconductor workflows
• Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot and debug complex production issues in customer environments, not just lab settings
• Experience working directly with customers or cross functional teams in a technical capacity is a strong plus
• Familiarity with GPU computing or machine learning applied to physical design problems is a plus, * You can walk into a customer meeting with incomplete information, ask the right questions, and leave with a clear action plan that both sides trust
• You switch contexts quickly without losing quality, moving from a customer debug session to an R&D design review to your own prototyping work in the same day
• You explain complex technical tradeoffs clearly, whether you are talking to a process engineer at a fab or a software architect in R&D
• You are self directed and do not wait for perfect alignment to start solving a problem, but you know when to pull in help or escalate
• You build things that work in production, not just demos, and you take ownership of the gap between prototype and deployment
• You present technical content confidently to varied audiences, from hands-on engineers to technical leadership

4.14.1 out of 5 stars Mountain View, CA 94043 $160,000 - $240,000 a year

Synopsys is the leader in engineering solutions from silicon to systems, enabling customers to rapidly innovate AI-powered products. We deliver industry-leading silicon design, IP, simulation and analysis solutions, and design services. We partner closely with our customers across a wide range of industries to maximize their R&D capability and productivity, powering innovation today that ignites the ingenuity of tomorrow.