Staff Digital Validation Engineer

Job Title

Staff Digital Validation Engineer

Role Summary

Lead validation strategy and execution for MCU/MPU subsystems, covering pre-silicon and post-silicon activities. Develop test plans, build automated validation flows, and debug hardware–software integration issues.

Work closely with RTL designers, verification, firmware/software, and product engineering to close coverage gaps and drive silicon readiness.

Experience Level

Senior — 7–10+ years of experience in semiconductor validation, product engineering, or silicon debug.

Responsibilities

Key responsibilities include planning and executing subsystem validation, building test automation, and performing low-level hardware/firmware debug.

• Define validation plans, test cases, and coverage metrics for CPU, memory, peripherals, and interconnects.
• Identify corner cases, stress scenarios, and system-level use cases; prioritize validation scope.
• Perform post-silicon bring-up and validation on silicon platforms, evaluation boards, and emulators; support pre-silicon/emulation when required.
• Develop validation test suites and automation using C/C++, Python, and scripting languages.
• Build and maintain regression and validation automation frameworks; create data-capture and analysis scripts.
• Perform low-level hardware/firmware debug using JTAG/SWD, logic analyzers, oscilloscopes, and trace tools; root-cause failures across CPU cores, memory, and peripherals.
• Collaborate with RTL, verification, and firmware teams to triage issues, close coverage gaps, and implement fixes.

Requirements

Must-have technical skills and experience; concise list of required and desirable qualifications.

• Must-have: 7+ years in semiconductor validation, silicon debug, or product engineering focused on digital/MCU/MPU subsystems.
• Must-have: Hands-on experience with MCU architectures and embedded systems, lab bring-up, and silicon debug tools (JTAG, logic analyzers, oscilloscopes).
• Must-have: Test development and automation experience using C/C++, Python, or equivalent scripting; experience building regression frameworks.
• Must-have: Proven ability to lead large or distributed engineering teams and to communicate effectively with technical and executive stakeholders.
• Nice-to-have: Experience with ARM or RISC-V cores, memory subsystems (DDR, SRAM, Flash), peripheral protocols (UART, SPI, I2C), and trace tools (ETM, ITM).

Education Requirements

Bachelor's or Master’s degree in Electrical, Electronics, Computer Engineering, or a closely related technical field.

About the Company

Company: NXP Semiconductors

Headquarters: Nijmegen, Netherlands

NXP Semiconductors N.V. is a global semiconductor company that provides High Performance Mixed Signal and Standard Product solutions. With over 45,000 employees and operations in more than 35 countries, NXP is a leader in secure connectivity solutions for embedded applications, catering to automotive, industrial IoT, mobile, and communication infrastructure markets. The company is committed to innovation and sustainability, advancing a smarter, safer, and more sustainable world through technology.