Senior PIC Design

Darwin Recruitment; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Darwin Recruitment is seeking a Senior Photonics Integrated Circuit Designer to design and develop complex PICs from concept to tape-out, collaborating with device, layout, packaging and systems engineers. This role offers the opportunity to influence product architecture and technical direction while working on challenging, first-of-its-kind photonic technologies for advanced optical platforms.

You will mentor junior engineers, perform simulations to validate designs, and drive

Qualifications

• MSc or PhD in Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Physics or a related discipline.
• Several years of industry experience designing photonic integrated circuits.
• Strong understanding of silicon photonics or other integrated photonic platforms.
• Experience with photonic simulation tools such as Lumerical, Ansys, Photon Design, Synopsys OptSim or equivalent.
• Familiarity with PIC layout tools including Cadence Virtuoso, KLayout, Synopsys OptoCompiler or similar.
• Experience taking designs through fabrication and experimental validation.
• Strong knowledge of optical device physics and electromagnetic simulation.
• Excellent communication skills and experience working within cross-functional engineering teams.

Responsibilities

• Design and optimise photonic integrated circuits including passive and active optical components.
• Develop photonic building blocks such as waveguides, splitters, couplers, modulators and detectors.
• Perform simulation and modelling to validate device performance and optimise designs for manufacturability.
• Work closely with layout engineers to prepare designs for fabrication and tape-out.
• Collaborate with packaging, test and systems teams to support device characterisation and product development.
• Analyse measurement data and iterate designs to improve performance and yield.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to the development of design methodologies and PDK libraries.

Skills

Photonics design

Optical simulation

Cross-functional collaboration

Fabrication experience

Communication skills

Education

MSc or PhD in Photonics/EE/Physics

Tools

Lumerical

Ansys

Photon Design

Synopsys OptSim

Cadence Virtuoso

KLayout

Synopsys OptoCompiler

Job description

Senior PIC Design

The Role

As a Senior Photonics Integrated Circuit Designer, you'll play a key role in designing and developing complex photonic integrated circuits from concept through tape-out. Working closely with device, layout, packaging and systems engineers, you'll help deliver high-performance PICs for cutting-edge optical platforms.

This is an opportunity to influence both product architecture and technical direction while working on challenging, first-of-its-kind photonic technologies.

What You'll Do

• Design and optimise photonic integrated circuits including passive and active optical components.
• Develop photonic building blocks such as waveguides, splitters, couplers, modulators and detectors.
• Perform simulation and modelling to validate device performance and optimise designs for manufacturability.
• Work closely with layout engineers to prepare designs for fabrication and tape-out.
• Collaborate with packaging, test and systems teams to support device characterisation and product development.
• Analyse measurement data and iterate designs to improve performance and yield.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to the development of design methodologies and PDK libraries.

What We’re Looking For

• MSc or PhD in Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Physics or a related discipline.
• Several years of industry experience designing photonic integrated circuits.
• Strong understanding of silicon photonics or other integrated photonic platforms.
• Experience with photonic simulation tools such as Lumerical, Ansys, Photon Design, Synopsys OptSim or equivalent.
• Familiarity with PIC layout tools including Cadence Virtuoso, KLayout, Synopsys OptoCompiler or similar.
• Experience taking designs through fabrication and experimental validation.
• Strong knowledge of optical device physics and electromagnetic simulation.
• Excellent communication skills and experience working within cross-functional engineering teams.

Nice to Have

• Experience with coherent optics, optical interconnects, LiDAR, quantum photonics or sensing technologies.
• Knowledge of semiconductor fabrication processes and design rules.
• Python, MATLAB or scripting experience for design automation and data analysis.
• Previous experience contributing to PDK development or custom photonic design flows.

Oliver Logan