Industrial Placement Detector IC Design

Leonardo UK Ltd; Southampton; Hybrid; GBP 24,000 - 29,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexi-days leave

Pension 15%

Mental health support

Private healthcare & discounts

Job summary

Leonardo UK Ltd is offering an Industrial Placement as a Detector IC Design Engineer in Southampton. You will help design and test infrared imaging products, participating in the full development cycle from requirements to hardware testing and customer liaison.

You will work within our mixed-signal IC design team, gaining hands-on experience at transistor, cell or block level and learning to interface with mechanical, software, systems and support teams.

Qualifications

• Currently studying an electronics biased degree with modules covering digital design, analogue design and signal processing; experience with PCB design and simulation tools is highly desirable.

Responsibilities

• Support design, simulation and verification of circuit blocks
• Support transistor level layout of circuit blocks
• Support characterisation of circuits in the lab to retrieve circuit measurement data
• Assist in the progression of IC design development activities
• Support test set‑up and automation of data acquisition

Skills

Digital design

Analog design

Signal processing

PCB design

Education

Electronics engineering degree

Tools

PCB design tools

Circuit simulation tools

Job description

Your impact

Are you ready to make an impact and gain hands‑on experience working on real‑world projects from day one? At Leonardo, we’re looking for industrial placement students who want to be part of something bigger—shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety. Our placements are designed to help you apply your studies in a practical setting, develop your technical skills, and gain valuable insight into how our business operates.

Our Industrial Placement Programme

Our Industrial Placement Programme offers you the chance to spend a year with us, working on meaningful projects alongside subject matter experts, within multidisciplinary teams, and across the product lifecycle. You’ll receive a salary of £26,228, with coaching and support from a dedicated team to help you achieve both your placement objectives and personal development goals. Successful completion of an Industrial Placement with Leonardo may also lead to an offer on our Graduate Development Programme. During your placement, we encourage you to spend at least three days each week on site to integrate with your team and maximise your learning experience.

What you will do as an Industrial Placement Detector IC Design Engineer

You will support the design and development of our world leading infrared imaging products for use in remote sensing and thermal imaging applications including earth observation, border surveillance, search and track systems and laboratory equipment. You will be introduced to utilising state‑of‑the‑art methods, technology and tools to explore all aspects of the development lifecycle, including requirements analysis, design, implementation, test, acceptance and product support. You will interface with customers (internal and external) on many factors within the design and liaise closely with Engineers from all other disciplines including Mechanical, Software, Systems, Supportability and Design Integrity. This role will be based within our mixed-signal IC design team, where you will gain experience working at transistor, cell or block level schematic and layout as well as testing of devices within the lab.

Key Areas of Responsibility

• Support design, simulation and verification of circuit blocks
• Support transistor level layout of circuit blocks
• Support characterisation of circuits in the lab to retrieve circuit measurement data
• Assist in the progression of IC design development activities
• Support test set‑up and automation of data acquisition

Skills, Qualifications & Knowledge Required

All of our Industrial Placement roles require you to be currently studying an electronics biased degree including modules covering topics such as digital design, analogue design and signal processing with experience of using PCB design and simulation tools is highly desirable.

Security Clearance

Many of our roles are subject to security and export control restrictions set by UK Government Security requirements and customer obligations. As a result, and in line with the UK Government Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) requirements, all successful applicants will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK, criminal record declaration information and employment and/or education history verification for the previous five years. For staff operating in more sensitive posts, there is an additional range of personnel security controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV). As part of this process, a range of factors may be considered, including an individual's background, travel history, nationality, previous nationalities held and other information relevant to the vetting assessment. To be eligible for National Security Vetting at SC level, applicants will generally be expected to have continuously resided in the UK for the previous five years. For DV clearance, this is typically ten years. In some circumstances, time spent overseas may be accepted, with additional overseas checks. Additional vetting requirements may apply upon appointment.

For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting

Why join us

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do, our teams are key contributors in shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety. We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work–life balance. Whether you're looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we’re here to help you thrive.

• Time to recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-days each year.
• Secure your future: Benefit from our award‑winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.
• Your wellbeing matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee‑led networks championing inclusion and diversity.
• Tailored perks: Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.

For a full list of our company benefits please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/company-benefits

We are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people, communities and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.

Primary Location: GB - Southampton

Contract Type: Fixed term

Hybrid Working: Hybrid International, multicultural, innovative, technological: this is Leonardo.

The company’s passionate and talented team is strongly influenced by STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) expertise, with a diverse range of experience that enables colleagues to share knowledge and know‑how across the generations. Leonardo always wants to expand its talent pool, here you can find the right opportunity for you!