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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Systems Engineer - **Company:** Neurophos Inc. - **Location:** Austin, TX, United States - **Experience:** Expert - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Systems Engineering, Ethernet, Python (Programming Language), MATLAB, Monte Carlo Methods, NumPy, PCI Express, Cadence Virtuoso, SciPy, Signal Processing, Hardware Acceleration - **Published:** September 19, 2026 - **Apply:** https://startup.jobs/staff-systems-engineer-signal-path-performance-modeling-neurophos-10127298 ## About the Role * MS or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or a closely related field, with emphasis on communication theory, signal processing, or mixed-signal systems. * 5+ years of professional experience in communication systems architecture, link-budget/signal-chain modeling, or performance modeling of optical or high-speed electrical communication systems. * Deep knowledge of modulation formats, equalization, synchronization and estimation, quantization effects, and coding-gain concepts, and how each factor into an end-to-end performance budget. * Expert-level proficiency in Python (NumPy/SciPy) and/or MATLAB/Simulink for behavioral modeling, Monte Carlo simulation, and statistical/time-domain analysis. * Demonstrated ownership of an end-to-end optical or RF link budget (or equivalent SNR/noise budget), including the ability to update allocations when a component or architecture choice changes and predict the system-level impact. * Excellent written and verbal communication for cross-functional collaboration with analog, digital, photonic, and software engineers, and the ability to present quantitative trade-offs clearly to technical leadership. Preferred Skills * Experience with optical communication links, coherent or direct-detection architectures, or high-speed SerDes/networking standards (Ethernet, PCIe, OIF-CEI). * System-level modeling of high-speed data converters (ADC/DAC), including quantization, sampling, and multi-device synchronization effects. * Familiarity with Cadence Virtuoso and Spectre sufficient to validate behavioral models against circuit-level simulation. * Hands-on laboratory characterization or silicon/system bring-up experience. * Familiarity with photonic integrated circuits, silicon photonics, or optical transceiver systems. ## Description We are seeking a highly skilled Systems Engineer to own the quantitative, end-to-end performance model of our optical vector-matrix multiplication (OVMM) engine. This role is the technical center of Systems Engineering's performance-modeling focus area: you will build and maintain the link and power budgets, quantify optical, analog, and digital impairments, and determine how accuracy, throughput, and power trade against one another as the architecture evolves., * Own and maintain the end-to-end optical and electrical link/power budget for the OVMM signal path, keeping it synchronized with the as-designed and as-measured hardware as the architecture evolves. * Build and maintain the reference behavioral model of the full TX-channel-RX signal path, capturing optical, analog, quantization, and algorithmic effects with the fidelity needed for architecture trades and requirements allocation. * Allocate NMSE/SNR/SNDR targets across the optics, analog, quantization, and algorithmic domains, and update these allocations as component and architectural choices change. * Characterize and model optical, analog, and digital impairments-noise, distortion, jitter, quantization effects, crosstalk, mismatch, and nonlinearity-and quantify their impact on system-level accuracy. * Analyze the impact of channel count, TX/RX configuration, and architectural changes on TOPS, TOPS/W, and latency, and determine whether a proposed architectural change is worth its additional power or complexity. * Develop and run statistical (Monte Carlo, corner) and time-domain simulations to quantify design margin and manufacturing robustness. * Correlate model predictions with laboratory and silicon measurements; when measured performance does not match simulation, isolate the source of the discrepancy and refine the model and allocations accordingly. Secondary Responsibilities * Supply architecture and requirements trade studies (led by the Architecture & Requirements focus area) with quantitative performance data. * Support the calibration accuracy budget definition (led by the Calibration, Bring-Up & Verification focus area) with a sensitivity analysis. * Collaborate with analog, photonic, digital, and software engineers to keep subsystem designs consistent with system-level performance targets. * Mentor engineers in system modeling, communication theory, and quantitative trade-study methodology. * Contribute to intellectual property creation, including invention disclosures and patents. ## Related Videos - [Python Data Visualization @ Deepnote (w/ PyViz overview)](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/113-python-data-visualization-deepnote-w-pyviz-overview) - [Strange New Worlds: shaping the future of the digital age](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/677-strange-new-worlds-shaping-the-future-of-the-digital-age) - [Leveraging Large Language Models for Legacy Code Translation: Challenges and Solutions](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1157-leveraging-large-language-models-for-legacy-code-translation-challenges-and-solutions) - [Vectorize all the things! 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