Sr. Staff Thermo-Mechanical Engineer

Job Title

Sr. Staff Thermo-Mechanical Engineer

Role Summary

Senior engineer on the Advanced Technology Infrastructure team responsible for thermo-mechanical simulation, structural reliability, and mechanical validation of semiconductor test and validation infrastructure (sockets, thermal heads, handlers, package interfaces). Works across simulation, materials, packaging, test, and manufacturing to ensure mechanical robustness from concept through production readiness.

Experience Level

Senior — typical experience guidance from the posting: Bachelor's degree plus 5–10 years, or Master's/PhD plus 3–5 years, or equivalent professional experience.

Responsibilities

Key responsibilities include:

• Perform advanced thermo-mechanical finite element simulations to evaluate stress, strain, deformation, and structural integrity of sockets, thermal heads, interconnects, fixtures, handlers, and package interfaces.
• Lead warpage and deformation analysis for multi-material assemblies, accounting for CTE mismatch, nonlinear behavior, temperature gradients, and realistic boundary conditions.
• Develop thermal cycling, creep, fatigue, and mechanical-relability models to predict long-term behavior and failure modes.
• Create process-aware mechanical models that capture assembly, cure, reflow, compression, press-fit, and load-path evolution through manufacturing and test.
• Correlate simulation results with mechanical testing, thermal cycling data, warpage metrology, and strain measurements to validate and refine models.
• Translate package and test infrastructure requirements into mechanical design constraints and reliability metrics to guide early architecture decisions.
• Identify mechanical risk drivers and recommend design, material, or process changes to improve robustness, manufacturability, and yield.
• Support root-cause analysis for cracking, delamination, contact degradation, excessive warpage, or mechanical instability in lab or field issues.
• Develop simulation methodologies, modeling guidelines, and best practices to improve consistency and prediction accuracy across programs.
• Collaborate with thermal, packaging, test, reliability, manufacturing teams and external vendors on material selection, tolerances, and mechanical performance expectations; document and present results in technical reports and reviews.

Requirements

Must-have technical skills and experience:

• Deep experience in thermo-mechanical simulation and structural FEA for complex, multi-material systems.
• Strong understanding of solid mechanics, material behavior, heat-induced stress, fatigue, and reliability physics.
• Experience modeling warpage, contact mechanics, and mechanical interfaces in semiconductor or high-precision hardware.
• Proficiency with simulation tools such as ANSYS, Abaqus, COMSOL, or equivalent, including nonlinear and transient analyses.
• Hands-on experience correlating simulation with physical testing and metrology.
• Scripting or automation experience using Python, MATLAB, or similar tools for simulation workflows and data analysis.
• Experience with process modeling and manufacturing-induced stress analysis and familiarity with thermal cycling standards and hardware qualification methodologies.
• Strong communication skills and demonstrated ability to influence cross-functional technical decisions; prior technical leadership on cross-organization infrastructure or platform programs.
• Eligibility to access export-controlled technology may be required; candidates may be subject to export license review.

Nice-to-have:

• Experience with semiconductor packaging, probe cards, test infrastructures, or handler-integrated mechanical systems.
• Experience with Silicon Photonics or high-power XPU thermal/test environments.

Education Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or related field with 5–10 years' related experience; or Master's degree and/or PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or related field with 3–5 years' related experience; OR equivalent professional experience in lieu of a formal degree.

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.