Principal Embedded Firmware Engineer - Networking (PAM4 DSP/ODSP/AEC/MicroLED)

Job Title

Principal Embedded Firmware Engineer - Networking (PAM4 DSP/ODSP/AEC/MicroLED)

Role Summary

The Principal Embedded Firmware Engineer will lead architecture, development, and validation of embedded C firmware for Marvell's optical DSP products used in pluggable optical modules. The role combines technical leadership of a small firmware team with cross-functional project coordination across hardware, QA, test, and customer teams.

The team owns embedded firmware, customer SDKs, and test infrastructure from pre-silicon through field deployment to ensure product readiness and customer success.

Experience Level

Senior (Principal level)

Responsibilities

Deliver technical leadership and drive firmware development, integration, and support for DSP-based optical PHY products.

• Lead architecture, design, development, and testing of embedded C firmware for DSP control blocks (RX/TX signal processing, FEC, PLL/FLL, reference generation, thermal monitoring).
• Act as technical lead for assigned product, guiding 2–8 firmware developers through design, code review, and production release.
• Translate standards or customer specifications (MSA/OIF/CMIS) into requirements and sequence diagrams for implementation.
• Drive root-cause investigations with HW and systems teams and coordinate fixes with validation and support teams.
• Plan software milestones, manage agile sprints, and provide regular status on scope, dependencies, and blockers.
• Coordinate cross-functional activities with Marketing, AE, Test, Validation, SW_QA, and Hardware teams to meet deliverables and schedules.
• Lead customer technical discussions, support bring-up activities, and resolve field issues.
• Mentor engineers, conduct code reviews, and promote maintainable firmware design and debugging practices.

Requirements

Core must-have qualifications and practical skills required for this role.

Must-have:

• Proven experience in memory-constrained embedded C/C++ firmware development.
• Experience as a SW Team Lead or Technical Lead on embedded projects.
• Experience in architecture design, code reviews, testing, and taking products through customer volume production.
• Knowledge of embedded SoC and microcontroller architecture (RISC-V a plus), memory-mapped hardware interfaces, GPIOs, and ISRs.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills and ability to collaborate in large cross-functional organizations.
• Hands-on problem-solving and debug skills on real hardware in lab environments.
• Experience with revision control and defect tracking systems (e.g., git, issue trackers).

Nice-to-have:

• Experience with SERDES, IM-DD/Coherent DSP, Ethernet/PCIe PHYs, or Optical Module software.
• Experience designing/debugging software state machines, context saving, and error handling.
• Background in mixed-signal control, PID/feedback loop control, bare-metal, RTOS, device drivers, or Linux kernel development.
• Familiarity with advanced compiler options (clang/gcc), Python, makefiles, gdb, IDEs, FPGA emulation, or Verilog.
• Familiarity with lab equipment (oscilloscopes, PNAs, ONTs) and PHY traffic schemes (FEC, PRBS, BER/SNR analysis).

Education Requirements

BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related technical field.

About the Company

Company: Marvell Technology

Headquarters: Santa Clara, California, United States

Marvell’s semiconductor solutions serve as essential building blocks of the data infrastructure connecting our world, driving innovation across enterprise, cloud, AI, and carrier architectures. The company focuses on creating transformative technology that shapes the future.