FPGA System Design Engineer

Altera; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 119,000 - 172,000; Full time

Job summary

Altera is seeking a highly motivated FPGA System Design Engineer to join our Aerospace, Defense, and Government (ADG) solutions team in San Jose, CA. You will architect, implement, optimize, and benchmark advanced signal processing and embedded computing solutions on Altera FPGA platforms.

You will collaborate with customers and internal teams to accelerate success, develop reference designs, and deliver complete system solutions that demonstrate FPGA performance and value.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical discipline.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills; able to debug complex hardware/software systems.
• Excellent communication and collaboration with customers and teams.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and implement FPGA-based solutions using RTL, DSP Builder, and embedded processor technologies for defense and aerospace applications.
• Partner directly with strategic customers to deploy and optimize DSP, communications, AI, and signal processing algorithms on Altera FPGA devices.
• Develop benchmarks, proof-of-concept demonstrations, reference designs, and complete system solutions that showcase FPGA performance and value.
• Collaborate with FPGA software and tools teams to identify customer needs, drive tool enhancements, and influence future product features.
• Analyze system-level performance and optimize FPGA implementations for throughput, latency, power, and resource utilization.
• Support customer design activities including architecture reviews, debugging, performance tuning, and technical enablement.
• Contribute technical collateral including design documentation, application notes, training materials, and best-practice guides.

Skills

Analytical skills

Problem-solving

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical/Computer Engineering or Computer Science

Tools

C/C++

Verilog

VHDL

Job description

Job Description

Altera is seeking a highly motivated FPGA System Design Engineer to join our Aerospace, Defense, and Government (ADG) solutions team. In this role, you will work directly with strategic customers to architect, implement, optimize, and benchmark advanced signal processing and embedded computing solutions on Altera FPGA platforms. You will collaborate with industry experts, customer engineering teams, and internal FPGA tool development organizations to accelerate customer success, demonstrate the value of Altera technology, and influence future product and software capabilities. This position provides an exciting opportunity to work on cutting‑edge technologies including FPGA‑based DSP, embedded systems, AI inference, high‑speed data converters, and advanced RF signal processing applications.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and implement FPGA‑based solutions using RTL, DSP Builder, and embedded processor technologies for defense and aerospace applications.
• Partner directly with strategic customers to deploy and optimize DSP, communications, AI, and signal processing algorithms on Altera FPGA devices.
• Develop benchmarks, proof‑of‑concept demonstrations, reference designs, and complete system solutions that showcase FPGA performance and value.
• Collaborate closely with FPGA software and tools teams to identify customer needs, drive tool enhancements, and influence future product features.
• Analyze system‑level performance and optimize FPGA implementations for throughput, latency, power, and resource utilization.
• Support customer design activities including architecture reviews, debugging, performance tuning, and technical enablement.
• Contribute technical collateral including design documentation, application notes, training materials, and best‑practice guides.

The pay range below is for Bay Area California only. Actual salary may vary based on a number of factors including job location, job‑related knowledge, skills, experiences, trainings, etc. We also offer incentive opportunities that reward employees based on individual and company performance.

$118.9K - $172.2K USD

We use artificial intelligence to screen, assess, or select applicants for the position. Applicants must be eligible for any required U.S. export authorizations.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline.
• 3+ years of experience in FPGA design and algorithm implementation.
• 2+ years of software development experience using C/C++.
• 1+ year of FPGA development experience using Verilog or VHDL.
• Strong understanding of digital logic design and FPGA development methodologies.
• Experience debugging and validating complex hardware/software systems.
• Excellent analytical, communication, and problem‑solving skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field.
• Hands‑on experience with:
  • MATLAB and Simulink
  • C/C++ and CUDA
  • Verilog and/or VHDL FPGA design
  • Quartus® Prime and ModelSim™/Questa™ simulation tools
  • Real‑Time Operating Systems (RTOS)
• Background in one or more of the following:
  • Digital Signal Processing (DSP)
  • Signal and Image Processing
  • Wireless and Communication Systems
  • Artificial Intelligence and Deep Learning
  • High‑speed ADC/DAC architectures
  • RF and Software Defined Radio (SDR) systems
• Experience with FPGA SoCs, embedded processors, and heterogeneous computing architectures.
• Demonstrated ability to learn new technologies quickly and work independently in a fast‑paced environment.
• Strong collaboration, presentation, and customer‑facing communication skills.

Job Type

Regular

Shift

Shift 1 (United States of America)

Primary Location

San Jose, California, United States

Additional Locations

Posting Statement

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, religious creed, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military and veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, gender, gender expression, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by local law, regulation, or ordinance.