CPU Microarchitecture and Design Intern
ArmJob Title
CPU Microarchitecture and Design Intern
Role Summary
Six-month internship on CPU microarchitecture and RTL design with Arm's Sophia Antipolis hardware engineering team. Work focuses on energy-efficient CPU hardware and balancing performance, power, area and frequency within production CPU designs.
Interns are assigned a real technical topic, mentored by an experienced engineer, use the production codebase and engineering flows, and deliver a final report and presentation. The internship starts in 2027.
Experience Level
Entry-level internship for students in their final year of a Master's (or equivalent). Typical experience: student-level (0–3 years).
Responsibilities
Work on a defined technical topic under mentorship and contribute to CPU microarchitecture and RTL.
- Take ownership of a specific technical task and drive it to completion with mentor support.
- Study existing microarchitecture, identify limitations and opportunities for improvement.
- Explore alternative solutions, develop or extend models, and evaluate trade-offs.
- Implement changes in production-quality RTL where applicable and verify their correctness.
- Measure and report impacts on metrics such as performance, power, area and development efficiency.
- Use the team’s codebase, tools and engineering flows; present progress and results to the team.
- Produce a final technical report and give an end-of-internship presentation.
Requirements
Key qualifications and skills expected for successful interns.
- Must-have: Availability for a 5–6 month internship starting in 2027; ability to analyse technical problems and communicate results clearly; familiarity with Linux and at least one programming or scripting language (C, C++ or Python).
- Nice-to-have: Familiarity with computer architecture fundamentals (microprocessors, CPU microarchitecture, ASIC design); exposure to hardware description languages (VHDL, Verilog, SystemVerilog); experience with RTL design or modelling.
- Good collaboration and communication skills; ability to work in a mentor-led team and present findings.
Education Requirements
Currently enrolled in the final year of a Master's degree (BAC+5 or equivalent) or another higher-education programme in Electronic Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science or a related technical field. French internships require a signed internship agreement (Convention de Stage) between the student, their university and the host organisation.
About the Company
Company: Arm
Headquarters: Cambridge, United Kingdom
ARM is a global leader in semiconductor and software design, driving innovation in computing technology. The company specializes in designing processors and systems that provide the essential building blocks for electronic devices. ARM's architecture is widely used in smartphones, servers, and IoT devices, and its collaborative culture fosters bold thinking, diversity, and high-impact benefits for its talented workforce.
