Photonic IC Design Engineer, Design Automation & Modeling

Job Title

Photonic IC Design Engineer, Design Automation & Modeling

Role Summary

Design and own the photonic design automation flow for product photonic integrated circuits (PICs): parametric layout generation, inverse-design engines, fabrication-aware models, automated verification, and sign-off across multiple foundry platforms. Collaborate with photonics test, automation, electronics, and ASIC teams to ensure designs are built for test and that measurements feed back into models.

This is a hands-on engineering role that combines software engineering, modeling, and lab characterization to deliver fabrication-ready photonic devices used on K2 product tapeouts.

Experience Level

Mid-level (Level - Mid-Career). The posting does not specify years of experience.

Responsibilities

Deliver and operate the team's photonic design flow and ship device blocks on product tapeouts.

• Own parametric layout generation, simulation orchestration, design-space exploration, and automated DRC/LVS and sign-off across integrated photonics platforms (silicon, SiN, III-V).
• Develop and maintain fabrication-aware inverse design (topology optimization using autodiff frameworks) with lithography and process-variation robustness.
• Integrate AI/agentic tools into design-space exploration, layout generation, optimization, and data analysis.
• Design, deliver, and characterize device and circuit blocks on product PICs from specification through tapeout and lab measurement (e.g., polarization handling, low-loss routing, mode converters, vertical couplers).
• Partner with test and automation teams to implement design-for-test, define measurement plans, and connect designs to the test data pipeline.
• Characterize devices in the lab and use simulation-to-measurement discrepancies to update models, design rules, and the flow.
• Maintain pcells and compact models with regression tests; derive calibration and control algorithms for tunable PICs.
• Document the flow, run design reviews, and mentor other engineers on tooling and best practices.

Requirements

Essential technical skills and legal/operational requirements for the role.

• Proven experience building inverse-design or computational design tools that produced fabricated, measured devices on commercial integrated photonics foundry platforms.
• Strong software engineering skills: Python, autodiff frameworks (e.g., JAX or PyTorch), version control, and writing maintainable shared code.
• Electromagnetic simulation experience (FDTD, FEM, or RCWA) and hands-on lab characterization correlated to simulation results.
• Experience with creating and maintaining component libraries, compact models, and regression tests for a shared design flow.
• Ability to characterize devices (insertion loss, extinction, bandwidth, high-speed electro-optic response) and convert data into model calibrations and flow updates.
• Willingness and ability to work on-site (role requires in-office presence).
• Must meet export-control requirements: U.S. person status or eligibility for required federal export authorizations (per ITAR).

Nice-to-have:

• Machine learning or agentic AI applied to engineering design.
• Control systems, calibration, or system identification for tunable photonic circuits.
• Photonic layout and PDK tooling experience (gdsfactory, KLayout, Cadence).
• Laser or VCSEL design and modeling; 3D heterogeneous integration or co-packaged optics.
• Contributions to open-source electromagnetic or design tools (e.g., Meep).

Education Requirements

PhD or MS in electrical engineering, optics, physics, computer science, or a related field; or a Bachelor’s degree with equivalent practical experience. The posting explicitly allows equivalent industry experience in place of a listed degree.

About the Company

Company: K2 Space

Headquarters: United States

K2 Space specializes in providing high-quality engineering solutions for ASIC, FPGA, and RTL designs. The company focuses on advanced digital design verification and development, catering to the growing demands of the semiconductor industry.