Principal RFIC Design Engineer

MaxLinear; Paterna; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock-based compensation

Private Medical Insurance

Life Insurance

Job summary

MaxLinear in Valencia, Spain, is seeking a Principal RFIC Design Engineer to lead RF/analog/mixed-signal IC development. You will own blocks from specification through tapeout, drive architecture decisions, and influence design methodology. Strong leadership and hands-on circuit experience are essential.

The role requires 10+ years in RFIC or analog/mixed-signal IC design, plus experience with Cadence Virtuoso/Spectre and high-volume CMOS products for wireless or data communications.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in RFIC or analog/mixed-signal IC design with production silicon ownership.
• Strong RF/analog fundamentals: noise, linearity, matching, stability.
• Experience with high-volume CMOS tech for wireless/wireline etc.
• Proficient in Cadence Virtuoso/Spectre and verification methods (S-parameters, PSS/PNOISE).

Responsibilities

• Lead architecture, design, simulation, and verification of RF and mixed-signal circuits.
• Own critical RFIC blocks from spec to tapeout and production.
• Guide RF-aware layout and post-layout verification with parasitic optimization.
• Define characterization, calibration, ATE, and production-test strategies for high-volume manufacturing.
• Provide mentorship and drive cross-functional technical alignment.

Skills

RFIC design

Analog/mixed-signal IC design

Circuit ownership

CMOS design

English communication

Education

Electrical/ Electronics Eng degree

Tools

Cadence Virtuoso/Spectre

S-parameters/PSS/PNOISE

Job description

Responsibilities

We are looking for an experienced Principal RFIC Design Engineer to take a leading technical role in the development of highly integrated RF and mixed‑signal ICs.

Role

The ideal candidate combines deep hands‑on circuit-design expertise with strong system understanding and a proven ability to drive complex designs from architecture and specification through implementation, verification, silicon bring‑up, and production. The role has significant influence on RF architecture, technical decisions, design methodology, and the development of the broader RFIC team. The main responsabilities are the following:

• Lead the architecture, design, simulation, and verification of complex RF, analog baseband, data‑converter, SerDes, and mixed‑signal circuits
• Own critical RFIC blocks from specification through tapeout, silicon bring‑up, characterization, production, and simulation‑to‑measurement correlation
• Design and/or technically lead circuits such as LNAs, PAs, mixers, VGAs, RF front ends, ADCs, DACs, filters, analog baseband signal‑processing chains, SerDes analog front ends, PLLs and frequency synthesizers, VCOs and DCOs, clock‑generation and distribution circuits, biasing, and power‑management circuitry
• Translate system‑level requirements into circuit specifications, architectures, verification plans, and robust designs across PVT, mismatch, noise, linearity, stability, dynamic range, power, and reliability
• Lead RFIC top‑level integration and sign‑off across RF, analog, digital, package, PCB, and power domains, including supply coupling, spurs, isolation, and signal integrity
• Partner with layout engineers on RF‑aware layout, parasitic optimization, EM analysis, extraction, and post‑layout verification
• Work with validation, test, and product engineering to define characterization, calibration, ATE, and production‑test strategies for high‑volume manufacturing
• Lead complex silicon investigations, identify root causes, and drive issues to resolution during bring‑up and productization
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship through design reviews, methodology improvements, and cross‑functional technical alignment

Qualifications

• BSc, MSc, or PhD in Electrical or Electronic Engineering, or a related field, with a minimum of 10 years of industry experience in RFIC or analog/mixed‑signal IC design and demonstrated ownership of complex designs that reached production silicon
• Strong RF and analog fundamentals, including noise, linearity, matching, stability, feedback, device modeling, process variation, data‑converter performance, and analog baseband signal processing
• Hands‑on design experience across several RF, data‑converter, SerDes, frequency‑generation, or analog baseband blocks, such as LNAs, PAs, mixers, VGAs, ADCs, DACs, filters, variable‑gain signal chains, SerDes analog front ends, PLLs, VCOs, and DCOs
• Solid experience with Cadence Virtuoso/Spectre or equivalent environments and with relevant verification methods, including S‑parameters, PSS/PAC/PNOISE, transient noise, and data‑converter or baseband performance analysis
• Strong understanding of layout‑dependent effects, parasitic extraction, EM effects, RF layout optimization, and post‑layout verification
• Experience developing high‑volume integrated products in advanced CMOS technologies for wireless connectivity, wireline communications, data conversion, SerDes, networking, or other complex analog and mixed‑signal applications
• Practical understanding of on‑chip LDOs, biasing, calibration, package and PCB interactions, ATE, production test, and high‑volume manufacturing
• Strong analytical, silicon‑debug, technical decision‑making, and cross‑disciplinary communication skills
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English

Compensation And Benefits

• Competitive Salary Package
• Stock‑based compensation
• Private Medical Insurance
• Life Insurance

Company Overview

MaxLinear is a global, NASDAQ‑traded company (MXL) where the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well. We are a fabless system‑on‑chip product company, striving to improve the world’s communication networks for everyone through our highly integrated radio‑frequency (RF), analog, digital, and mixed‑signal semiconductor solutions for access and connectivity, wired and wireless infrastructure, and industrial and multi‑market applications.

We hire the best people in the industry and engage them in some of the most exciting opportunities that connect the world we live in today. Our growth has come from innovative, bold approaches to solving some of the world’s most challenging communication technology problems in the most efficient and effective manner.

MaxLinear began by developing the world’s first high‑performance TV tuner chip using standard CMOS process technology. Others said we couldn’t achieve the extremely high‑performance requirements using CMOS, but we proved them wrong and achieved enduring global market leadership with our designs. Since then, we’ve developed a full line of products that drive 4G and 5G infrastructure; enable data center, metro and long‑haul optical interconnects; bring 10Gbit to the home; power the IoT revolution; and enable robust and reliable communication in harsh industrial environments. Over the years, we’ve expanded through organic growth and through several acquisitions that have perfectly complemented our existing portfolio and enabled us to deliver complete end‑to‑end solutions in our target markets. One such example was the acquisition of Intel’s Home Gateway Platform Division that added Wi‑Fi, Ethernet, and Broadband Gateway Processor SoC technology to our connected home portfolio creating a complete and scalable platform of connectivity and access solutions to fully address our customers’ needs.

Our headquarters are in Carlsbad, near San Diego, California. We also have major design centers in Irvine and San Jose, California; Valencia, Spain; Bangalore, India; Munich, Germany; Israel; and Singapore.

We have approximately 1,200 employees, a substantial majority of whom have engineering degrees and include masters and Ph.D. graduates from many of the premiere universities around the world. Our employees thrive on innovation, outstanding execution, outside‑the‑box thinking, nimbleness, and collaboration. Together, we form a high‑energy business team that is focused on building the best and most innovative products on the market.