Senior FPGA Engineer

ESRF - The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility; Grenoble; On-site; EUR 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation support

International environment

Competitive compensation

Job summary

ESRF - The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble seeks a Senior FPGA Engineer to design next-generation FPGA-based instrumentation for the accelerator complex and beamlines. You will work on detector readout, data acquisition, embedded control and real-time DSP, collaborating with electronics, software, controls and physics experts.

The role combines architecture, RTL design, verification, integration and deployment in a hands-on, multidisciplinary team environment, with a focus on

Qualifications

• Master's degree in Electronics, Electrical Engineering or related discipline; PhD advantageous.
• 10+ years of FPGA design and development experience including architecture, implementation, verification and deployment.
• Strong understanding of timing closure, clock domain crossing, pipelining and high-speed digital design.
• Experience delivering FPGA-based systems for data acquisition, DSP, embedded control or real-time instrumentation incl. high-speed interfaces.
• Familiarity with digital electronics and interaction with FPGA-based designs.
• Experience leading complex technical developments within multidisciplinary teams.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving and communication skills.
• Proficiency in English; Python, C/C++, Git; CI development workflows.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop FPGA architectures for real-time instrumentation, data acquisition, control and synchronisation.
• Verify and optimise FPGA designs with focus on timing, determinism, resource efficiency and maintainability.
• Contribute to architecture of complete instrumentation systems with electronics, embedded software and controls teams.
• Lead FPGA technical activities within projects and provide guidance throughout the lifecycle.
• Support integration, commissioning and long-term maintenance of FPGA-based instrumentation.
• Promote engineering excellence through reusable IP, design reviews, documentation and robust practices.
• Evaluate emerging FPGA technologies and contribute to the Electronics Unit roadmap.

Skills

FPGA design

Timing closure

Digital signal processing

Embedded control

Data acquisition

High-speed interfaces

Team leadership

Python

C/C++

Git

CI-based development

Education

Master's degree in Electronics

PhD advantage

Tools

Python

C/C++

Git

CI workflows

Job description

• Publication start on Intranet: 18/12/2025

Within the Instrumentation Services and Development Division, the Electronics Unit develops advanced instrumentation for the ESRF accelerator complex and experimental stations (beamlines). We design instrumentation that operates under demanding requirements for precision timing, deterministic control and high-throughput data acquisition in support of world-class scientific research.

As a Senior FPGA Engineer, you will play a key role in designing the next generation of FPGA-based instrumentation used across the accelerator complex and beamlines. You will contribute to challenging developments involving detector readout, data acquisition, embedded control and real-time digital signal processing, working alongside experts in electronics, software, control systems and accelerator physics.

This is a hands‑on technical role for an experienced FPGA engineer who enjoys taking ownership of complex developments, from system architecture and RTL design through verification, integration and deployment. Working within multidisciplinary teams, you will deliver reliable, high-performance FPGA solutions while helping shape the Electronics Unit's FPGA development practices and technical roadmap.

Main Responsibilities:

• Design and develop FPGA architectures for real-time instrumentation, data acquisition, control and synchronisation systems.
• Implement, verify and optimise FPGA designs with a strong focus on timing closure, deterministic behaviour, resource efficiency and long-term maintainability.
• Contribute to the architecture of complete instrumentation systems in close collaboration with electronics, embedded software, controls and scientific teams.
• Lead the FPGA technical activities within multidisciplinary projects and provide technical guidance throughout the development lifecycle.
• Support the integration, commissioning and long-term maintenance of FPGA-based instrumentation for the accelerator complex and beamlines.
• Promote engineering excellence through reusable FPGA IP, design reviews, clear documentation and robust development practices.
• Evaluate emerging FPGA technologies, devices and design methodologies, contributing to the Electronics Unit's technology roadmap.

Expected profile

• Master's degree (or equivalent, 300 ECTS) in Electronics, Electrical Engineering or a closely related discipline. A PhD is an advantage.
• Extensive experience in FPGA design and development, typically acquired over 10 or more years, covering architecture, implementation, verification and deployment.
• Strong understanding of FPGA design principles, including timing closure, clock domain crossing, pipelining, resource optimisation and high-speed digital design.
• Experience developing FPGA-based systems for data acquisition, digital signal processing, embedded control or real-time instrumentation, including high-speed interfaces and communication protocols.
• Good understanding of digital electronic systems and their interaction with FPGA-based designs.
• Experience leading complex technical developments and collaborating effectively within multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving and communication skills.
• Proficiency in English, the working language of the facility.
• Familiarity with software tools used for hardware verification, automation and testing (Python, C/C++, Git and CI-based development workflows).

Working conditions

Permanent contract.

The salary will be calculated on the basis of relevant qualifications and professional experience.

What makes the ESRF experience unique…

Join an innovative international research institute, with a workforce from 38 different countries

Collaborate with global experts to advance science and address societal challenges

Come and live in a vibrant city, in the heart of the Alps, and Europe's Green Capital 2022

Enjoy a workplace designed to support your quality of life

Benefit from our competitive compensation and allowances package, including financial support for your relocation to Grenoble

For further information on employment terms and conditions, please refer to "What we offer" section of our Careers page https://www.esrf.fr/Jobs

The ESRF is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from disabled persons.