Physical Verification Engineer

Salience Labs; Oxford; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Salience Labs Ltd. is seeking a Physical Verification Engineer to drive DRC/LVS signoff for IC and photonic IC designs.

You will work at the intersection of electronic and photonic design, validating layouts and ensuring tapeout cleanliness. The role requires 3+ years of hands-on physical verification experience, proficiency with Calibre or Synopsys ICV for DRC/LVS signoff, GDS/OASIS knowledge, and strong scripting skills in Python/Tcl/Shell.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of hands-on physical verification experience in IC design.
• Proficient with Calibre and/or Synopsys ICV for DRC/LVS signoff.
• Experience with GDS/OASIS formats and LVS concepts.
• Scripting in Python, Tcl, or shell; Linux proficiency.
• Version control experience (Git) and handling libraries/runsets.
• Ability to independently debug hierarchical netlist and layout issues.
• Strong written communication for documenting root causes and fixes.

Responsibilities

• Run and debug physical verification (DRC, LVS, extraction) on IC and photonic IC layouts.
• Debug LVS/DRC discrepancies, including port mismatches, hierarchy mismatches, and device recognition issues.
• Read, manipulate, and QA GDS/OASIS layout data.
• Maintain verification runsets and rule decks.
• Build Python/Tcl/shell tooling to automate verification flows and triage error reports.
• Maintain verification libraries and runsets under version control, with controlled release processes.
• Handle third-party and foundry IP with care, following licensing terms.
• Work with design, layout, and CAD teams to close out verification issues ahead of tapeout.
• Document known issues, workarounds, and runset changes.

Skills

Python

Tcl

Git

Calibre

Synopsys ICV

GDS/OASIS

Tools

Cadence Virtuoso

Synopsys CustomCompiler

Job description

About us

Salience Labs is building an industry-defining approach to optical circuit switching for AI infrastructure, engineered for real latency reduction and cost savings. We're moving towards real-world deployment, and joining at this stage means genuine ownership over that next chapter, working alongside a highly technical team on one of the most consequential problems in AI infrastructure today.

About the Role

We're looking for a Physical Verification Engineer to drive DRC/LVS signoff for our integrated circuit and photonic integrated circuit (PIC) designs. You'll work at the intersection of electronic and photonic design, running and debugging verification flows against foundry PDKs and helping keep our tapeouts clean.

What You'll Do

• Run and debug physical verification (DRC, LVS, extraction) on IC and photonic IC layouts

• Debug LVS/DRC discrepancies, including port mismatches, hierarchy mismatches, and device recognition issues

• Read, manipulate, and QA GDS/OASIS layout data

• Maintain and extend verification runsets and rule decks

• Build Python/Tcl/shell tooling to automate verification flows and triage error reports

• Maintain verification libraries and runsets under version control, with controlled release processes

• Handle third-party and foundry IP with care, following licensing terms

• Work with design, layout, and CAD teams to close out verification issues ahead of tapeout

• Document known issues, workarounds, and runset changes

What You Bring

Required

• 3+ years of hands-on physical verification experience in IC design

• Practical experience with Siemens Calibre and/or Synopsys ICV for DRC/LVS signoff

• Experience with custom/analog layout tools such as Cadence Virtuoso or Synopsys CustomCompiler

• Strong working knowledge of GDS/OASIS formats and LVS concepts

• Proficiency with Linux and scripting in Python, Tcl, or shell

• Experience managing rule decks, runsets, or libraries under version control (e.g., Git)

• Ability to independently debug complex hierarchical netlist and layout issues

• Strong written communication for documenting root causes and fixes

Nice to have

• Photonic IC verification experience

• Experience with Verilog/SystemVerilog netlists

• Exposure to foundry PDK qualification

• Experience building internal automation to scale verification