Physical Design Engineer, Senior to Staff Level

Role Summary

The Physical Design Engineer is responsible for the physical implementation of complex digital integrated circuits (ASICs/SoCs) from netlist to GDSII. This includes transforming logical circuit designs into physical layouts that satisfy timing, power, area, and reliability requirements.

Experience Level

Mid-level: Approximately 5-8 years of experience in related roles.

Responsibilities

Key responsibilities include:

• Execute full physical design flow from netlist to GDSII, covering Floorplanning, Power Planning, Placement, Clock Tree Synthesis (CTS), and Routing.
• Perform Static Timing Analysis (STA) to resolve setup/hold violations across process corners and modes (PVT).
• Conduct Design Rule Checks (DRC), Layout vs. Schematic (LVS), and Electrical Rule Checks (ERC) for manufacturability.
• Implement low-power design techniques and analyze IR drop/EM (Electromigration).
• Analyze and mitigate crosstalk, noise, and signal integrity issues.
• Develop and maintain scripts (Tcl, Shell, Perl, Makefile) to automate design flows.

Requirements

Qualifications include:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• Minimum of 2 years of related work experience (or equivalent education/experience).
• Proficiency with EDA tools such as Synopsys (ICC2, Fusion Compiler) and Siemens/Mentor (Calibre).
• Strong scripting skills in Tcl, Shell, Makefile, or Perl.
• Deep understanding of CMOS digital circuit design and standard cell libraries.
• Knowledge of modern technology nodes (e.g., 12nm, 7nm, 5nm).

Education Requirements

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field required; PhD acceptable.

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.