ASIC Digital Physical Design Engineer

Nordic Semiconductor; West of England; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Incentive plan

Flexible working hours

Medical insurance

Family-friendly policies

Job summary

Nordic Semiconductor is hiring a Physical Design Engineer to transform advanced semiconductor designs into high-performance silicon. You will drive floorplanning, power integrity, and place-and-route, collaborating across design teams to ensure robust tape-out.

You will contribute to PD flow automation, analyze power integrity, and support silicon bring-up. This role values strong English communication and problem-solving in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• BSc or MSc in electronics engineering or related field.
• Proven experience in chip implementation.
• Experience with Synopsys and Cadence IC tools for implementation and signoff.
• Contributed to flow development and setup.
• Proficient in TCL, Perl, Python or similar scripting languages.
• Experience using AI-assisted tools to improve design productivity.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication.

Responsibilities

• Lead floorplanning, macro placement, and voltage region definition.
• Develop and implement robust power distribution networks.
• Execute Place & Route including CTS, congestion optimization, and timing closure.
• Perform physical verification and signoff ensuring foundry readiness.
• Analyze power integrity, IR-drop, electromigration, and reliability.
• Drive ECOs and late-stage design optimizations to meet timing.
• Support silicon bring-up and tape-out with physical design expertise.
• Contribute to PD flows, automation scripts, and methodologies.

Education

BSc/MSc in Electronics Engineering or similar

Tools

Synopsys IC tools

Cadence IC tools

Flow development & setup

Job description

About The Job

As a Physical Design Engineer, you will play a key role in transforming advanced semiconductor designs into high-performance, manufacturable silicon products. Working at the heart of the chip implementation flow, you will drive critical physical design activities from floorplanning and power implementation through place-and-route, timing closure, physical verification, and final tape-out. This is a unique opportunity to work on cutting-edge technology, solve complex engineering challenges, and influence the development of next-generation low-power semiconductor solutions.

About The Job

As a Physical Design Engineer, you will play a key role in transforming advanced semiconductor designs into high-performance, manufacturable silicon products. Working at the heart of the chip implementation flow, you will drive critical physical design activities from floorplanning and power implementation through place-and-route, timing closure, physical verification, and final tape-out. This is a unique opportunity to work on cutting-edge technology, solve complex engineering challenges, and influence the development of next-generation low-power semiconductor solutions.
You will collaborate closely with talented design, architecture, verification, and silicon teams while helping shape future methodologies, automation flows, and AI-assisted design practices. If you are passionate about delivering high-quality silicon, enjoy tackling difficult technical problems, and want to see your work make its way into real-world products, this is the role for you!

Key Responsibilities

• Floorplanning activities, including macro placement, partitioning, and voltage area definition
• Develop and implement robust power distribution networks
• Execute Place & Route activities, including clock tree synthesis (CTS), congestion optimization, signal integrity improvements, and timing closure
• Perform comprehensive physical verification and signoff activities, ensuring designs meet foundry requirements and are ready for successful tape-out
• Analyze and optimize power integrity through IR-drop, electromigration, and reliability assessments, identifying and resolving issues that could impact silicon performance or long-term product reliability
• Drive ECOs and late-stage design optimizations, implementing efficient fixes while maintaining schedule commitments and achieving timing closure across all operating modes and corners.
• Support silicon bring-up and tape-out activities by providing physical design expertise, debugging implementation issues
• Contribute to the development and enhancement of physical design flows, automation scripts, and implementation methodologies to improve productivity, quality, and design scalability across future projects

Key Qualifications

• BSc/MSc in Electronics Engineering or similar
• Several years of experience in chip implementation
• Experience of relevant Synopsys and Cadence IC implementation and signoff tools
• Contribution to flow development and setup
• Knowledge of scripting languages like TCL, Perl, Python or similar
• Experience using AI-assisted tools to improve design productivity (e.g. AI-driven EDA flows, code/script generation, debug assistance)
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English

Personal Skills

The ideal candidate is a detail-oriented engineer who thrives on solving complex technical challenges and takes pride in delivering high-quality silicon. With a structured and analytical mindset, you can navigate intricate physical design issues, balance competing priorities, and maintain focus on achieving demanding performance, power, area, and schedule targets. You enjoy digging into root causes, finding efficient solutions, and continuously improving design methodologies, flows, and tools.
You combine independent ownership with a collaborative mindset, enabling you to drive tasks forward while contributing to a highly skilled and supportive team environment. Curious by nature, you embrace new technologies, including AI-assisted engineering tools, and are motivated by the opportunity to learn, innovate, and help shape the next generation of cutting-edge semiconductor products.

Working for Nordic

Working at Nordic, you will be inspired and supported to develop yourself. Our teams enjoy a professional and informal working environment. We value and encourage the continuous development of skills and expertise to the highest levels. We are proud of our Norwegian heritage, our highly skilled international workforce, and our world-leading innovation.
We offer a variety of tasks and projects, and the possibility to work alongside some of the world’s most renowned experts within their field. We encourage our employees to question the established and innovate while expecting professionalism, commitment, and the will to learn.

Benefits

• Competitive salary with short- and long-term incentive plan
• Flexible working hours
• Medical insurance
• Family-friendly policies, insurances, and benefits

Practical details

• Location: Bristol, UK | Stockholm, Sweden | Tampere, Finland

Please note that this position might be subject to a background check.