Electronics Engineer (SY-BI-BL-2025-114-GRAP)

Job Description

Your responsibilities

Join the Beam Loss Measurement (BL) Section within the Beam Instrumentation (BI) Group as an Electronic Engineer to work on the LHC Beam Loss Monitor Diamond System!

The LHC Beam Loss Monitor Diamond system is based on polycrystalline chemical vapour deposition (CVD) diamond detectors. Its nanosecond response time makes it the ideal LHC instrument for measuring localised bunch-by-bunch beam losses. This has become an invaluable resource for physicists to analyse loss mechanisms and optimize the LHC performance.

The detector signals are captured by high-speed digitizers with an AD9680 device, which provides 14-bit, 650MSPS, dual ADCs. The samples are transmitted to an Arria V FPGA, hosted in a VME64x FMC carrier card via 4 JESD204B lanes, delivering a total throughput of 6.5 Gbps. The FPGA performs real-time processing of the data, including among others histogramming, baseline reconstruction, signal capture via auto-triggering (based on detected signal patterns) and synchronization with multiple beam timing signals.

In this role, you'll design, implement, and fully validate the next generation firmware solution for the LHC BLM Diamond system. You will work with state-of-the-art hardware platforms and utilise industry standard digital communication protocols such as JESD204B, Wishbone, VME64x, Intel Avalon, SPI, and I2C.

The responsibilities will include:

• Firmware development: designing and implementing a new LHC BLM diamond firmware capable of supporting several parallel acquisition modes and flexible trigger configurations.
• Validation & testing: developing a SystemVerilog testbench environment to thoroughly validate the firmware design.
• Continuous integration: implementing automated workflows for continuous integration in the project's repository servers.
• Laboratory qualification: developing laboratory qualification tests using the provided hardware test bench, which includes a VME crate, CPU, the acquisition and processing electronics, generators, oscilloscopes, etc.
• Collaboration: working closely with software engineers to develop the applications for analysing the detector signals and enhance the system's usability.

This role offers an opportunity to work on a cutting-edge project that directly supports CERN's LHC operations, providing exposure to high-performance computing, advanced hardware design methodologies, and real-time signal processing.

Your profile

Skills:

• Experience with hardware description languages (HDL), especially System Verilog (Verilog and VHDL would be an asset);
• Experience with Python;
• Experience in the design of complex digital design systems, implemented using FPGAs;
• Strong understanding of digital bus communication protocols. In particular: JESD204B. Wishbone, VME64x, and Intel Avalon, SPI, I2C;
• Solid understanding of Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and Clock Domain Crossing (CDC) Techniques;
• Experience in version control systems, specifically Git;
• Knowledge of good practices for long-term programme maintainability;
• Experience with other scripting languages like Tcl would be an advantage;
• Understanding of and experience with oscilloscopes or laboratory instrumentation would be an advantage;
• Ability to work autonomously and in a structured manner;
• Spoken and written English, with a commitment to learn French.

Eligibility criteria:

• You are a national of a CERN Member or Associate Member State.
• You have a professional background in Electronics Engineering (or a related field) and have either:
  • a Master's degree with 2 to 6 years of post-graduation professional experience;
  • or a PhD with no more than 3 years of post-graduation professional experience.
• You have never had a CERN fellow or graduate contract before.

Additional Information

Job closing date: 29.07.2025 at 23:59 CEST.

Contract duration: 24 months, with a possible extension up to 36 months maximum.

Working hours: 40 hours per week

Target start date: 01-November-2025

This position involves:

• Work in Radiation Areas.
• Interventions in underground installations.
• A valid driving licence.
• Stand-by duty and work during nights, Sundays and official holidays, when required by the needs of the Organisation.

Job reference: SY-BI-BL-2025-114-GRAP

Field of work: Electrical or Electronics Engineering

What we offer

• A monthly stipend ranging between 6287and 6911Swiss Francs per month (net of tax).
• Coverage by CERN's comprehensive health scheme (for yourself, your spouse and children), and membership of the CERN Pension Fund.
• Depending on your individual circumstances: installation grant; family, child and infant allowances; payment of travel expenses at the beginning and end of contract.
• 30 days of paid leave per year.
• On-the-job and formal training at CERN as well as in-house language courses for English and/or French.

About us

At CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, physicists and engineers are probing the fundamental structure of the universe. Using the world's largest and most complex scientific instruments, they study the basic constituents of matter - fundamental particles that are made to collide together at close to the speed of light. The process gives physicists clues about how particles interact, and provides insights into the fundamental laws of nature. Find out more on http://home.cern.

We are on a Quest. A Journey into discovery like no other. Bring your expertise to our unique work and develop your knowledge and skills at pace. Join world-class subject matter experts on unique projects, in a Quest for greater knowledge and deeper understanding.

Begin your CERN Quest. Take Part!

Diversity has been an integral part of CERN's mission since its foundation and is an established value of the Organization. Employing a diverse workforce is central to our success.