Principal Photonics IC Design Engineer

Job Title

Principal Photonics IC Design Engineer

Role Summary

Technical lead responsible for the architecture, delivery, and silicon validation of photonic integrated circuits (PICs) for co-packaged optical interconnects. Works across photonic device, analog/mixed-signal, packaging, and systems teams to bring PIC products from concept through production tapeout.

Work supports development of high-performance optical interconnects for advanced AI systems.

Experience Level

Senior — typically 8+ years of industry experience in photonics IC design with demonstrated progression into technical leadership roles.

Responsibilities

Lead end-to-end PIC product development and coordinate cross-functional execution.

• Own PIC product delivery: architecture, design, layout, DRC/LVS verification, tapeout, and post-silicon validation on silicon photonics platforms.
• Lead cross-functional teams including photonic device, analog/mixed-signal, packaging, and systems engineering.
• Drive tapeout schedules, define milestones, and resolve critical-path issues across concurrent PIC programs.
• Architect optical transceiver PICs integrating modulators, photodetectors, WDM components, waveguides, and optical couplers for high-speed or DWDM applications.
• Define and improve PIC design methodology and automation (scripted DRC, parameterized cells) and verification flows in Cadence and related EDA tools.
• Mentor and provide technical guidance to photonics designers and set technical direction for the PIC roadmap.

Requirements

Key technical and leadership must-haves, followed by preferred skills.

• Must-have: 8+ years industry experience in photonics IC design with technical leadership experience.
• Must-have: Hands-on experience with Cadence Virtuoso, PCell development, and SKILL scripting for photonic IC layout and simulation.
• Must-have: Proven production tapeout experience, having driven PICs from design through GDS signoff on foundry silicon photonics processes.
• Must-have: Strong understanding of photonic device physics: waveguides, passive/active components, ring/MZI modulators, photodetectors, optical couplers.
• Must-have: Experience with layout, DRC/LVS verification, tapeout coordination, and post-silicon validation activities.
• Must-have: Demonstrated ability to set project scope, make architecture tradeoffs, and deliver on schedule through cross-team alignment.
• Nice-to-have: Experience with high-speed (>50 Gbaud) modulator or receiver PIC design and DWDM multi-channel transceivers.
• Nice-to-have: Familiarity with co-packaged optics system requirements and advanced packaging integration.
• Nice-to-have: Experience with photonic simulation and CAD tools (Ansys Lumerical, Zemax, MATLAB, Python, Verilog-A) and electromagnetic solvers (FDTD, FDE).
• Nice-to-have: Publications or patents in silicon photonics.

Education Requirements

PhD in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Applied Physics, or a closely related field with emphasis on integrated photonics or silicon photonics, or equivalent practical experience.

About the Company

Company: NVIDIA

Headquarters: Santa Clara, California, USA

NVIDIA is a global leader in accelerated computing, renowned for its innovative solutions in AI and digital twins that transform diverse industries. The company specializes in networking technologies, providing end-to-end InfiniBand and Ethernet solutions for servers and storage that optimize performance and scalability. NVIDIA serves sectors such as high-performance computing, enterprise data centers, and cloud computing, constantly reinventing its products and services to stay ahead in the market.