Staff/Principal Electrical Engineer

Job Title

Staff/Principal Electrical Engineer

Role Summary

Lead the electrical architecture for optical transceiver modules, spanning low-noise analog/control-loop design, power delivery, and high-speed digital/PCB design. Direct a PCB layout engineer from placement through manufacturing data and act as a deep technical contributor across mixed-signal, power, and high-speed domains.

Work cross-functionally with photonics, firmware, test, NPI, mechanical, and supply chain teams to move hardware from architecture to production. On-site in the Bay Area (Santa Clara).

Experience Level

Staff/Principal level. Placement is based on demonstrated technical ownership and scope. See Education Requirements for degree-specific years guidance.

Responsibilities

The role owns electrical design from schematic to production readiness and coordinates with layout, test, and supply chain.

• Own end-to-end electrical architecture for control and validation boards for photonic transceivers.
• Develop detailed schematics and review EE team designs.
• Architect low-noise analog and control-loop circuits; define grounding and shielding strategies.
• Design power delivery and PDN for high-current, high-thermal-load conditions; optimize power efficiency and EMI filtering.
• Perform SPICE simulation and circuit-level validation prior to layout.
• Design high-speed digital interfaces and define impedance-controlled routing and SI requirements.
• Direct PCB layout engineer across placement, routing, layer usage, thermal management, and DFM for manufacturability.
• Select and qualify components, create second-source strategies, and manage long-lead/EOL risk with vendors.
• Own design release artifacts and governance: schematics, BOM, assembly drawings, part-numbering, and PLM updates.
• Collaborate with Test, NPI, and Supply Chain for EVT/DV/PV readiness, test procedure development, and production support.

Requirements

Must-have technical skills and proven delivery on mixed-signal, power, and high-speed PCB projects.

• Extensive mixed-signal design: low-noise analog, control loops, grounding/shielding, and noise budgeting.
• Power design expertise: PDN design, high-current systems, thermal considerations, buck/boost/LDO topologies, and EMI filtering.
• High-speed digital design experience: impedance control, high-speed serial interfaces, and signal integrity practices.
• Proficiency with SPICE simulation and circuit-level validation.
• Proficiency in schematic and PCB tools (Altium Designer, Cadence Allegro, OrCAD, PADS) and experience with PLM (Arena) for design release.
• Knowledge of PCB fabrication, DFM, DFT, DFA, and DFR practices; ability to gate layout deliverables against electrical and manufacturing requirements.
• Experience integrating MCU, SoC, ASIC, or FPGA components into board-level designs.
• Component selection, vendor engagement, and risk mitigation (second sources, EOL management).
• Proven cross-functional communication skills and strong analytical/problem-solving ability for system-level issues.

Nice-to-have:

• Firmware experience.
• Hands-on PCB layout experience (preferred but not required).

Education Requirements

Bachelor's, Master's, or PhD in Electrical Engineering or a related technical field. Experience guidance provided by degree: BS ~10–15 years; MS ~8–12 years; PhD ~5–9 years.

About the Company

Company: Xscape Photonics

Headquarters: Santa Clara, California, United States

Developer of integrated photonics solutions and instrumentation, specializing in photonic circuits, control systems, and test methodologies for optical communication and sensing applications. Works on device integration, control algorithms, and validation of photonic hardware and firmware.