ASIC CAD Engineer

Job Title

ASIC CAD Engineer

Role Summary

Work at Draper as an ASIC CAD Engineer responsible for transistor-level circuit design and CAD support across chip architecture, physical layout, and verification. The role supports hardware design efforts for defense, space, and biomedical systems.

Deliver transistor-level designs and simulations, guide physical layout decisions, mentor junior engineers, and contribute to proposal and business development activities as required.

Experience Level

Mid-level. Experience guidance provided by the employer: 5–7 years with a bachelor's degree, 3–5 years with a master's degree, or 0–2 years with a PhD in ASIC Hardware Engineering or a related field.

Responsibilities

The core responsibilities include transistor-level design, system-level hardware evaluation, and CAD/physical design guidance.

• Design and simulate circuits at the transistor level to meet architectural and requirement specifications.
• Contribute to system-level design and optimize hardware for performance, power, and cost.
• Evaluate hardware feasibility of complex algorithms and requirements.
• Independently contribute to complex chip architectures and designs.
• Develop requirements and drive solutions to complex problems; adapt designs as requirements change.
• Guide physical layout activities including floor-planning; perform simulations using extracted parasitics.
• Develop, document, and teach best practices to less experienced engineers and lead small technical teams.
• Participate in business development and proposal activities.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Key skills and experience required for successful performance (must-have vs nice-to-have):

• Must-have: Proven experience in integrated circuit design and transistor-level simulation; strong understanding of semiconductors and computer architecture.
• Must-have: Experience writing detailed design specifications and delivering designs to schedule; strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Must-have: Effective verbal and written communication, planning, and time-management skills; ability to prioritize tasks and meet deadlines.
• Must-have: Ability to manage or mentor small technical teams.
• Nice-to-have: Hands-on experience with physical layout, floor-planning, extracted parasitic simulation, and CAD tool flows.
• Nice-to-have: Experience contributing to business development, proposals, or teaching engineering practices.

Education Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related field required; Master's degree preferred. PhD holders are considered. Relevant fields include ASIC/ASIC Hardware Engineering, Electrical or Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical disciplines. The posting provides degree-based experience guidance: 5–7 years with a bachelor's, 3–5 years with a master's, 0–2 years with a PhD.

About the Company

Company: Draper

Headquarters: Cambridge, MA, United States

Draper is an independent, nonprofit research and development organization based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. With over 2,000 employees, Draper develops advanced technologies in defense, space, biomedical engineering, and other national-security and commercial domains through multidisciplinary teams of engineers and scientists.