Senior Silicon Photonics Reliability Engineer

Job Title

Senior Silicon Photonics Reliability Engineer

Role Summary

The Senior Silicon Photonics Reliability Engineer will define and execute reliability strategy, qualification, and technology development for silicon photonic devices and photonic integrated circuits (PICs). The role partners with technology development, process integration, design, manufacturing, and quality teams to identify reliability risks, lead failure analysis, and enable successful transfer into high-volume manufacturing.

Experience Level

Senior - this role targets experienced engineers. Typical guidance: candidates meeting minimum qualifications have 4+ years industry experience with a Master's degree or 2+ years with a PhD.

Responsibilities

Key responsibilities include technical leadership of reliability activities across development and manufacturing.

• Assess and characterize intrinsic and extrinsic reliability of photonic devices, PICs, lasers, and integrated optical products.
• Develop reliability models and acceleration methodologies using DOE, statistical analysis, and reliability testing.
• Define reliability, qualification, and certification requirements for new silicon photonics technologies and products.
• Lead failure analysis and root-cause investigations using data-driven and model-based techniques.
• Drive reliability improvements via process, design, and material optimization and support process integration.
• Develop and implement reliability characterization techniques, screening methods, and quality controls.
• Support new technology introduction and transfer to high-volume manufacturing; evaluate and mitigate reliability risks.
• Analyze large datasets to identify trends and present technical findings to engineering leadership and stakeholders.

Requirements

Must-have technical experience and skills; preferred items listed separately.

• Experience in silicon photonics, photonic or optical device technology development (examples in posting include 2+ years for photonics specialty or 4+ years in semiconductor reliability roles).
• Experience with semiconductor device characterization, validation, yield, reliability, or test engineering.
• Demonstrated failure analysis and root-cause problem solving in semiconductor or photonics contexts.
• Proficiency with DOE/SPC, statistical analysis, and reliability data analysis methods.
• Ability to collaborate across technology, process, design, manufacturing, and quality teams and communicate technical results to stakeholders.
• Hands-on familiarity with process integration, wafer fabrication challenges, and manufacturing transfer activities.

Nice-to-have:

• Experience with compound semiconductor processing and photonic device physics.
• Knowledge of reliability qualification standards for photonic datacom/telecom (e.g., Telcordia GR-468, AEC-Q102).
• Experience with data extraction and analysis tools (JMP, Crystal Ball, ILM/REL/PCS, SQL scripting).
• Experience in a semiconductor foundry environment and product qualification processes.
• Familiarity with reliability failure statistics, physics-of-failure, and failure analysis methodologies.

Education Requirements

Minimum: Master's degree in Photonics/Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Materials Science, Semiconductor Engineering, or a related STEM field plus 4+ years of relevant experience. Alternately, a PhD in those fields with 2+ years of relevant industry experience. Preferred: PhD in Physics, Materials Science, Electrical Engineering, or related engineering fields with photonic device experience.

About the Company

Company: Intel Corporation

Headquarters: Santa Clara, California, USA

Intel Corporation is a leading multinational technology company known for its innovative semiconductor solutions, including microprocessors, artificial intelligence accelerators, and memory products. Headquartered in the United States, Intel focuses on cutting-edge technology and a collaborative working environment, driving advancements in semiconductor manufacturing to meet global demands. The company emphasizes professional development and aims to shape the future of technology through groundbreaking designs.