Transceivers & Protocol IP Application Engineer

Job Title

Transceivers & Protocol IP Application Engineer

Role Summary

Work as a technical application engineer in San Jose to help customers adopt FPGA transceiver PHYs and protocol IP across design, implementation, hardware bring-up, validation, and production readiness.

The role combines hands-on FPGA design and lab debug with customer-facing support, cross-functional collaboration, and contributions to product and documentation improvements.

Experience Level

Mid-level (mid-career). Specific years of experience not stated.

Responsibilities

Provide technical support and ownership for customer transceiver and protocol-IP issues from architecture through resolution.

• Advise on transceiver PHY and protocol-IP architecture, configuration, clocking, and system integration.
• Support customer designs for Ethernet, PCIe, JESD204B/C, CPRI/eCPRI, Interlaken, DisplayPort, HDMI, SerialLite, and related protocols.
• Review system architectures, schematics, RTL, constraints, timing reports, simulation results, and hardware measurements; identify risks and mitigations.
• Reproduce and isolate issues using Quartus Prime, simulation, System Console, Signal Tap, Transceiver Toolkit, development kits, and lab equipment.
• Diagnose problems spanning FPGA IP, transceiver configuration, firmware, reference clocks, signal integrity, resets, and protocol behavior.
• Manage technical cases from intake through closure with clear documentation and customer updates.
• Escalate suspected product or IP defects with reproduction data and technical analysis; drive corrective actions and product improvements.
• Develop scripts, test collateral, and reference designs to automate debug and improve customer adoption.
• Provide training, workshops, demonstrations, and mentoring for customers, partners, and internal teams.

Requirements

Core technical skills and hands-on experience required; preferred items listed separately.

• Must-have: Professional experience in FPGA applications, high-speed digital design, ASIC/FPGA validation, protocol IP development, field application engineering, or technical customer support.
• Must-have: Hands-on experience with FPGA design flows and hardware debugging using Quartus Prime or comparable FPGA tools.
• Must-have: Working knowledge of high-speed serial interfaces and transceiver PHY concepts including clocking, PLLs/CDRs, resets, equalization, link training, and signal-integrity fundamentals.
• Must-have: Experience reading and debugging RTL, IP configuration files, timing constraints, simulation waveforms, register maps, and hardware logs.
• Must-have: Proficiency in a hardware description language such as Verilog, SystemVerilog, or VHDL.
• Must-have: Scripting or software-development experience in Python, Tcl, Bash, C, or C++.
• Must-have: Strong analytical, problem-solving, technical writing, and customer-communication skills; ability to manage multiple technical issues and maintain ownership.

• Nice-to-have: Experience with Altera Agilex, Stratix, Arria, or Cyclone FPGA families and their transceiver tiles.
• Nice-to-have: Knowledge of Ethernet MAC/PCS/FEC, PCIe, JESD204, CPRI/eCPRI, Interlaken, DisplayPort, HDMI, or other protocol IP.
• Nice-to-have: Familiarity with Quartus Prime Pro, Platform Designer, System Console, Signal Tap, Transceiver Toolkit, ModelSim, Questa, or similar EDA/debug tools.
• Nice-to-have: Experience with board-level bring-up, eye-diagram or BER analysis, loopback testing, protocol analysis, and lab-based transceiver characterization.
• Nice-to-have: Experience producing customer-facing documentation, training materials, application notes, reference designs, or design examples.
• Nice-to-have: Willingness to travel occasionally for customer meetings, workshops, design reviews, or hardware bring-up support.

Education Requirements

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical discipline.

About the Company

Company: Altera

Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

Altera provides leadership programmable solutions for applications ranging from cloud to edge, unveiling limitless AI possibilities. Their extensive product portfolio includes FPGAs, CPLDs, Intellectual Property, development tools, and System on Modules aimed at accelerating innovation in various fields.