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Emulation Methodology Engineer

Qualcomm
September 04, 2026
Full-time
On-site
San Diego, California, United States
$140,000 - $210,000 USD yearly
Verification Jobs, Level - Mid-Career

Job Title

Emulation Methodology Engineer

Role Summary

Work on Qualcomm's Emulation Team to develop and support pre-silicon SoC emulation and FPGA prototyping platforms. The role focuses on methodology development, emulation build generation, bring-up, and system-level debug to validate complex SoC designs.

Experience Level

Mid-level. Preferred experience is 5+ years working in emulation and silicon environments; candidates should have prior ASIC/SoC development, verification, validation, integration, or related experience.

Responsibilities

Main responsibilities include methodology development, platform bring-up, and validation for emulation and prototyping.

  • Design, develop, and deploy uniform global methodologies for emulation build generation and debugging across FPGA-based emulation platforms.
  • Perform pre-silicon prototyping, enablement, and bring-up for new SoC designs on FPGA/emulation hardware.
  • Bring up and maintain FPGA emulation/prototyping hardware and associated software toolchains.
  • Debug low-level hardware and software issues; support system debug including waveform generation and content debug.
  • Validate and debug digital circuits, SoC blocks, and interconnects using emulation tools and methodologies.
  • Collaborate across sites, engage with vendors, and present technical status to engineering leadership.

Requirements

Technical skills and domain experience required or strongly preferred.

  • Experience with emulation platforms and tools (FPGA prototyping, Veloce, Palladium) and related workflows (synthesis, place and route, constraints, clocking, timing closure).
  • Expertise in Verilog / SystemVerilog and C programming.
  • Proficient scripting skills (Python, TCL).
  • FPGA expertise with Xilinx or Intel devices, toolchains, and timing-closure techniques.
  • Familiarity with debug tools such as JTAG and kernel debuggers.
  • Understanding of SoC functionality: CPU/DSP cores, multimedia, IO, peripherals, DDR, modem, bus protocols, interconnects, and power/performance basics.
  • Experience validating and debugging digital circuits and system-level interactions.
  • Strong cross-team communication skills and experience working with vendors and multi-site teams.

Education Requirements

One of the following: Bachelor's degree in Science, Engineering, or a related field plus 4+ years of relevant ASIC/SoC design/verification/validation/integration experience; OR Master's degree in Science, Engineering, or related field plus 3+ years of relevant experience; OR PhD in Science, Engineering, or related field plus 2+ years of relevant experience.


About the Company

Company: Qualcomm

Headquarters: San Diego, California, United States

Qualcomm is a global leader in semiconductor and telecommunications equipment, specializing in mobile technologies and innovations. Known for its Adreno GPUs, the company provides solutions enabling advancements in mobile gaming, AI, VR/AR, and autonomous driving. Qualcomm's cutting-edge technology and commitment to high-performance, power-efficient designs drive the evolution of mobile graphics and connectivity worldwide.

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Date Posted: 2026-09-03