Semiconductor Design Engineer Jobs in Raleigh, NC
The Research Triangle has quietly turned into a real chip design location. Arm's US design center in Morrisville is the anchor, and CHIPS Act money plus Wolfspeed's silicon carbide expansion have pulled more silicon work into the Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill area.
Semiconductor design engineer jobs in Raleigh sit with a mix of established teams and newer arrivals: Arm for CPU IP, Qualcomm for 5G modem and RF, Cirrus Logic (the former Wolfson Microelectronics group) for audio and mixed-signal, Ericsson for networking silicon, and Lenovo's data center chip team. Wolfspeed runs power device design and fab work in Durham and Chatham County.
The work splits along those lines. CPU core and system IP design at Arm, modem and RF IC development at Qualcomm, audio codecs and mixed-signal at Cirrus Logic, and SiC power device design at Wolfspeed. Local startups tend to lean toward AI accelerator and edge inference silicon.
Who hires and for what: Arm for Cortex CPU IP and system IP; Qualcomm for 5G modem and RF front ends; Cirrus Logic for audio and mixed-signal; Wolfspeed for SiC MOSFETs and power modules. You can check who is posting across the Triangle on the roundup of companies hiring in the area.
On pay, mid-level design engineers in the Triangle generally land around $115K to $150K base, with senior and staff roles reaching $160K to $210K base before bonus and stock. Headline numbers run below the Bay Area, but North Carolina's lower cost of living recovers much of that on take-home. The salary guide has ranges by discipline and level.
The pipeline is a big part of why the cluster keeps growing. NC State's ECE department is the main feeder for Triangle chip teams, with Duke and UNC Chapel Hill adding EE and CS graduates. That keeps entry-level and new-grad hiring active, especially at Arm and the local startups.
Save a search on semidesignjobs.com filtered to the Raleigh-Durham area and your design discipline, and you will get an email when a matching role opens. For more, browse Arm CPU design engineer jobs and Qualcomm 5G modem design roles.
FAQ
Which semiconductor companies have the most design jobs in Raleigh, NC?
Arm's US design center in Morrisville is the largest dedicated design employer in the Triangle. Qualcomm, Ericsson, Lenovo's data center chip team, and Cirrus Logic also keep engineering teams in the area, and Wolfspeed runs power device design nearby in Durham.
Is the Raleigh semiconductor ecosystem growing?
Yes. CHIPS Act incentives, Wolfspeed's silicon carbide investment, and continued expansion of Arm's Morrisville campus have all added roles. SemiDesignJobs tracks new Raleigh semiconductor postings in real time so you can catch openings as they land.
Which universities feed semiconductor talent in the Raleigh area?
NC State University's ECE department is the primary feeder for Triangle chip companies and is particularly strong in semiconductor design. Duke University and UNC Chapel Hill add EE and CS graduates who move into local chip design roles.