Senior Integrated Photonics Engineer - Active Devices and Circuits

Job Title

Senior Integrated Photonics Engineer - Active Devices and Circuits

Role Summary

Design, model, test, and characterize active integrated photonic devices and photonic integrated circuits to support development of a fault-tolerant quantum computer. The role works cross-functionally with electronics, manufacturing, packaging, test, and system teams to move devices from design through tapeout and assembly-level validation.

Experience Level

Senior-level. Candidates are expected to have significant hands-on experience; industry candidates with ~3+ years of relevant experience or equivalent postdoctoral experience are preferred. Hiring level and scope will be calibrated to the selected candidate's background.

Responsibilities

The core responsibilities focus on design, verification, fabrication readiness, measurement, and cross-disciplinary integration of active photonic devices and circuits:

• Design, simulate, and optimize active photonic devices and photonic integrated circuits (electro-optic phase shifters, modulators, switches).
• Lead photonic tapeouts: layout, DOE and circuit design, tapeout planning, and coordination with packaging and electronics teams.
• Plan and execute automated, high-volume testing and develop new test methods as required.
• Develop and implement data-analysis and visualization methods; analyze measurement data to drive design decisions.
• Perform assembly-level characterization of integrated photonic chips, PCBs, drivers, and related hardware.
• Collaborate across multidisciplinary teams (electronics, test, manufacturing, packaging, system validation) to iterate designs and validate performance.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to project planning and execution.

Requirements

Key technical skills and experience required or strongly preferred. Must-have items are listed first; nice-to-have items follow.

• Must-have: Deep hands-on experience with active integrated photonic devices and experimental characterization (electro-optic phase shifters, modulators, high-speed operation and measurement).
• Must-have: Experience with photonic design and modeling tools (examples: Lumerical, Ansys Lumerical, COMSOL, Meep, Tidy3D) and photonic circuit modeling.
• Must-have: Practical experience with photonic tapeouts and photonic layout tools (e.g., IPKISS, GDSFactory) and familiarity with foundry processes.
• Must-have: Hands-on high-speed characterization skills (S-parameters, time-domain large-signal analysis) and familiarity with lab equipment such as oscilloscopes, VNAs, signal generators, and high-speed probes.
• Must-have: Proficiency in scripting/programming for data analysis and automation (Python, MATLAB).
• Must-have: Strong data-analysis, problem-solving, communication, and the ability to work independently and collaboratively in a multidisciplinary engineering environment.
• Nice-to-have: Experience with specific material platforms (thin-film lithium niobate, BTO, doped silicon, InP/GaAs/AlGaAs/InGaAsP) and high-speed device operation (10+ GHz).
• Nice-to-have: RF/signal-integrity simulation experience (HFSS, ADS) and knowledge of photonic-electronic interfaces (drivers, TIAs).
• Nice-to-have: Photonic packaging experience and assembly-level integration expertise.

Education Requirements

The posting references graduate-level technical education: MS or PhD in electrical engineering, applied physics, optical engineering, or a related discipline. The posting further indicates a PhD with relevant exposure to integrated photonics and electro-optic devices is required or strongly preferred, with ~3+ years of industry experience preferred or equivalent postdoctoral experience.

About the Company

Company: PsiQuantum

Headquarters: Palo Alto, CA, United States

PsiQuantum develops silicon-photonic quantum computers aimed at building million-qubit, fault-tolerant systems. Founded in 2016, the company combines semiconductor manufacturing processes, photonic hardware, and quantum software to scale quantum systems for commercial and government applications.