mmW IC Design Intern - RF Power Amplifier for Automotive Radar
NXP SemiconductorsJob Title
mmW IC Design Intern - RF Power Amplifier for Automotive Radar
Role Summary
Internship on the 77 GHz automotive radar transmit chain focused on power amplifier (PA) design and integration. The intern will evaluate CMOS and BiCMOS process options, design a schematic-level PA demonstrator and produce comparative analysis to inform next-generation radar transmitter designs.
You will work with RF architects, RF design engineers, system and validation engineers in an international, multidisciplinary team based in Grenoble.
Experience Level
Entry-level - internship targeted at final-year engineering students or MSc students; no prior industry experience required.
Responsibilities
Primary tasks and deliverables for the internship:
- Review target TX architecture, RF specifications and packaging constraints relevant to the PA.
- Define a methodology to compare selected CMOS and BiCMOS process options.
- Build or adapt transistor-level test benches to evaluate gain, output power, efficiency, stability, noise and robustness.
- Design and optimize the PA power stage including impedance matching and biasing choices.
- Assess sensitivity to process, supply voltage, temperature, layout parasitics and thermal constraints (PVT analysis).
- Study the interface with the driver and phase rotator and identify integration constraints.
- Compare implementation options using common performance, area and cost metrics and document conclusions.
- Deliver a schematic-level demonstrator, simulation environment, final report and a presentation of results.
Requirements
Must-have and preferred capabilities for successful candidates.
- Strong fundamentals in analog and RF circuit design (transistor-level understanding, biasing, matching).
- Ability to create and interpret simulation results and to document engineering conclusions clearly.
- Interest in IC design, semiconductor technologies and trade-off analysis (power, area, noise, robustness).
- Proactive, organized and able to work in an international, multidisciplinary team.
- Good written and spoken English.
- Nice-to-have: experience or coursework in microwave/mmWave design and familiarity with PA design concepts.
Education Requirements
Final-year engineering school student or Master's (MSc) in electrical engineering, microelectronics, electronics or a closely related field (internship-level academic standing specified).
About the Company
Company: NXP Semiconductors
Headquarters: Nijmegen, Netherlands
NXP Semiconductors N.V. is a global semiconductor company that provides High Performance Mixed Signal and Standard Product solutions. With over 45,000 employees and operations in more than 35 countries, NXP is a leader in secure connectivity solutions for embedded applications, catering to automotive, industrial IoT, mobile, and communication infrastructure markets. The company is committed to innovation and sustainability, advancing a smarter, safer, and more sustainable world through technology.
