Principal Microwave Engineer

Aylight; Zürich; Presencial; CHF 90.000 - 130.000; Jornada completa

Ventajas ofrecidas por este puesto de trabajo

Direct impact on core hardware architecture

Meaningful equity participation

Collaboration with leading research groups

Small team with full ownership of your domain

Descripción de la vacante

Aylight in Zurich is seeking a Senior IC Designer to own the full RFIC design cycle for high-frequency electronic subsystems. The role includes ensuring the packaging strategy for photonic modules and involves close collaboration with the PIC team.

Applicants should have a PhD in Electrical Engineering and a minimum of 5 years of IC design experience. Aylight offers competitive salaries benchmarked to Zurich’s semiconductor standards and a dynamic working environment with minimal bureaucracy.

Formación

• PhD in Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or a related field is required.
• Minimum 5 years of IC design experience with demonstrated tapeouts at high frequencies.
• Hands-on expertise in high-frequency semiconductor processes.

Responsabilidades

• Own the RFIC design cycle from architecture to tapeout.
• Lead packaging strategy for photonic modules.
• Work with the PIC team on opto-RF co-design.

Conocimientos

IC design experience

InP HBT, GaAs HBT/pHEMT, or SiGe BiCMOS

mm-wave circuit design

EM simulation

mm-wave on-wafer characterisation

optical frequency combs

electro-optic modulator design

Educación

PhD in Electrical Engineering

MSc with strong industrial track record

Herramientas

HFSS

Momentum

Sonnet

ADS

Virtuoso

Descripción del empleo

Own the full RFIC design cycle - from mm-wave architecture to tapeout - for the high-frequency electronic subsystems driving our FM comb laser platform. Work directly with the PIC team on opto-RF co-design and lead the packaging strategy for our photonic modules. This is a senior individual-contributor role with full technical ownership at the hardware heart of Aylight.

Qualifications

• PhD in Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or related discipline; MSc with strong industrial track record considered
• Minimum 5 years of IC design experience at 30 GHz and above, with demonstrated tapeouts at 100 GHz or above
• Hands-on expertise in InP HBT, GaAs HBT/pHEMT, or SiGe BiCMOS process
• Strong mm-wave circuit design: oscillators, tuned amplifiers, transmission-line matching, passive and active topologies
• EM simulation (HFSS, Momentum, Sonnet) and RF/mm-wave circuit simulation (ADS, Virtuoso)
• mm-wave on-wafer characterisation - VNA, spectrum analyser, phase noise measurement
• Understanding of RF packaging at mm-wave frequencies: bond transitions, parasitic management, thermal constraints
• High-speed electro-optic modulator (EAM/MZM) or photodetector design in III-V or silicon photonic platforms
• Experience with InP monolithic PIC platforms and foundry PDKs
• Experience with opto-RF co-packaging and electro-optic bandwidth limitations
• Background in optical frequency combs, WDM systems, or coherent optical interconnects
• Experience with heterogeneous or hybrid electronics-photonics integration

Benefits

• Founding-team-adjacent role with direct impact on core hardware architecture
• Competitive salary benchmarked to Zurich deep-tech and semiconductor industry standards, with meaningful equity participation
• World-class lab infrastructure and collaboration with leading photonics research groups in Zurich
• Small team, zero bureaucracy - full ownership of your domain from day one
• Office in central Zurich - Europe's deep-tech capital