FPGA Engineer

Job Title

FPGA Engineer

Role Summary

Design and implement FPGA-based hardware and firmware to support research and development of next-generation quantum communication systems. Work within an R&D team to enable real-time quantum communications, scalable network control, and high-performance data acquisition for experimental quantum network nodes.

Collaborate with researchers and technical staff to integrate programmable logic, processing systems, and experimental hardware while delivering technical documentation and progress reports.

Experience Level

Mid-level. Prior hands-on experience designing and deploying FPGA systems is required; no specific years of experience specified.

Responsibilities

Primary duties include FPGA firmware development, system integration, and support of experimental quantum networking hardware.

• Design, develop, and enhance FPGA controllers for real-time quantum communication systems.
• Maintain and improve firmware supporting classical communication protocols and optical phase stabilization.
• Develop firmware subsystems for evolving experimental hardware configurations and system requirements.
• Design scalable data acquisition, analysis, and control architectures for quantum network nodes.
• Research, design, simulate, implement, and evaluate Time-to-Digital Converter (TDC) architectures.
• Analyze FPGA resource utilization, timing performance, clocking, and system resolution; optimize modules for strict timing and synchronization requirements.
• Develop hardware schematics, block diagrams, Verilog/VHDL modules, simulation environments, and supporting technical documentation.
• Design and implement PL–PS interfaces on FPGA and MPSoC platforms and develop/maintain PYNQ libraries for platform access.
• Prepare monthly progress reports and participate in technical meetings, workshops, and collaborations.
• Perform other duties as assigned in support of the research program.

Requirements

Must-have technical skills and experience:

• Demonstrated experience designing and developing FPGA-based systems and firmware.
• Proficiency in Hardware Description Languages (Verilog and/or VHDL).
• Experience with FPGA development platforms and vendor toolchains.
• Embedded firmware development and hardware/software integration experience.
• Knowledge of digital communications, communication systems, and signal processing principles.
• Experience with hardware simulation, validation, and performance analysis.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, troubleshooting, and technical communication skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively in an R&D environment and prepare technical reports.

Nice-to-have:

• Experience with PYNQ and MPSoC platforms.
• Experience designing or evaluating TDC architectures.

Education Requirements

Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a closely related technical discipline required.

About the Company

Company: Oso Semiconductor

Headquarters: Mountain View, CA, United States

Early-stage fabless semiconductor startup developing mmWave beamforming RFICs that deliver 2–4x power reduction for phased array systems across SATCOM, 5G, and radar. Founded by UC Berkeley PhDs, the company has raised Series A funding and works with defense and commercial customers on full-custom mmWave front-end and beamformer chips.