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# Sr. Staff Engineer, Photonics Design

- **Company:** Ayar Labs
- **Location:** San Jose, CA, United States
- **Experience:** Expert
- **Contract:** Permanent contract
- **Skills:** Adobe InDesign, Artificial Intelligence, Software Debugging, Firmware, Python (Programming Language), Reliability Engineering, Software Requirements Analysis, Test Data
- **Published:** November 7, 2026
- **Apply:** https://www.juju.com/job/28_25303_cbfe8b2f4f24412589dbb8058bc4a384

## About the Role

* B.S. or equivalent experience in Electrical Engineering, Optical Engineering, or related field
 * 6+ years of commercial experience in silicon photonics or integrated photonic device design
 * Deep understanding of photonic device physics: electro-optic modulators, photodetectors, gratings, couplers, micro-ring resonators
 * Proficiency with simulation and design tools for passive and active optical devices (e.g., FDTD, charge transport simulation)
 * Strong Python skills; demonstrated experience writing well-structured code and extending a shared codebase as part of a team
 * Track record of taking opto-electronic components from design through manufacturing: design, debug, and validation
 * Track record of solving problems that don't have obvious solutions - in device physics, process integration, or system-level tradeoffs, * M.S. or PhD with integrated photonics focus
 * Experience engaging directly with foundry process teams on process development or customization beyond standard PDK offerings
 * High-speed design and RF test experience: VNA, BERT, wafer-level screening
 * Statistical analysis of process and test data; DOE methods
 * Familiarity with co-packaged optics: system requirements, CPO architectures, and the industry transition from pluggable to on-board optics
 * Experience with electro-optic reliability modeling and testing
 * Demonstrated use of AI tools to achieve meaningful productivity gains in design or analysis workflows - e.g., device optimization, AI-assisted code development

## Description

We're looking for a Sr. Staff Engineer to own the photonic device layer of that solution. You will define what our components need to achieve, determine what's physically achievable from leading-edge processes, and drive the device roadmap from simulation through high-volume manufacturing. This is a role for someone who thrives on hard, under-specified problems - where the right answer isn't in the literature and the process isn't quite doing what you need it to do.

You'll engage directly with partners across the Taiwan semiconductor ecosystem - not just designing to the PDK you're given, but influencing what that process can achieve. And you'll shape the design and analysis infrastructure your team depends on: the simulation automation, layout flows, and verification frameworks are yours to architect, not inherit.

What You'll Own

 * Device roadmap. Own the device roadmap for integrated photonic components: set performance targets, assess process feasibility, and drive development from simulation through production.
 * Foundry partnership. Engage directly with the Taiwan semiconductor ecosystem to push process capability in service of product requirements - not just consuming the PDK, but influencing what it does.
 * Design infrastructure. Architect and extend the team's design and analysis tools: simulation automation, layout flows, verification frameworks, and custom code the broader team depends on.
 * Debug and yield. Lead device-level debug, failure analysis, and yield investigation across development and production runs.
 * Cross-functional co-design. Drive component performance in close collaboration with system, laser, packaging, firmware, and circuit design teams - the device layer connects all of them.