Physical Implementation Engineer (Top Level)

Job Title

Physical Implementation Engineer (Top Level)

Role Summary

Owner of top-level/full-chip physical implementation for high-performance SoCs/SiPs, responsible for the flow from RTL to GDSII and coordination with IP, EDA, and silicon/package partners. Work focuses on top-level design planning, clocking strategies, timing closure, and physical verification for advanced-node designs.

Experience Level

Mid-level (experienced engineer). Role expects multiple tapeouts and leadership in top-level implementation, typically several years of physical design experience.

Responsibilities

Primary responsibilities at the full-chip/top level:

• Plan and execute top-level integration, partitioning, and floorplanning for large hierarchical designs with multiple instantiated modules.
• Define and implement clock-tree strategies (basic, H-tree, mesh, multi-source CTS) and coordinate clock planning across blocks.
• Drive top-level STA and physical verification activities; coordinate block-level fixes with block owners and STA leads.
• Integrate external IP and collaborate with EDA and silicon/package vendors to meet timing, power, and manufacturability targets.
• Automate flows and develop scripts for tool control, data extraction, and reporting.
• Mentor and guide junior engineers; coordinate release/tapeout activities.

Requirements

Must-have technical skills and experience:

• Proven experience on multiple (>2) tapeouts of high-performance SoCs or SiPs at advanced nodes.
• Expert user of Synopsys physical implementation tools (Fusion Compiler and/or ICC2) and PrimeTime for timing analysis.
• Experience with physical verification tools such as ICV or Calibre.
• Advanced scripting skills (Tcl, Perl, Python) for tool control and data manipulation.
• Familiarity with revision control systems, preferably Git.

Nice-to-have:

• Prior role as Physical Design lead on hierarchical advanced-node designs.
• Experience mentoring or managing small physical-design teams.

Education Requirements

Master's or PhD in Computer Science, Microelectronics, or Physics (explicitly specified).

About the Company

Company: Semidynamics

Headquarters: Barcelona, Spain

Semidynamics is a company specializing in infrastructure verification and automation solutions. They focus on optimizing resources and enhancing continuous integration processes in design verification. The team collaborates to maintain regression test infrastructure and develop efficient workflows.