Hardware Design Engineer

Actalent; United States; Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

PTO

401K

12% bonus

Stock plan

Sign-on bonus

Job summary

Actalent in Horsham, PA seeks a Senior Hardware Design Engineer specializing in optical transceivers to own high-speed board-level hardware design for 1.2T and 1.6T platforms from architecture and schematic capture through PCB layout oversight, validation, and release.

You will lead architecture, evaluate components, and ensure signal integrity, power integrity, and thermal performance while collaborating with RF, firmware, mechanical, PCB layout, manufacturing, and test teams in a hybrid work

Qualifications

• Requires 5+ years in hardware design for board-level electronics.
• Experience leading board-level hardware development from concept to release.
• Strong digital and analog circuit design for high-speed boards.

Responsibilities

• Own PCB hardware design from concept through release.
• Lead board-level architecture and hardware design for 1.2T and 1.6T platforms.
• Develop complete electrical schematics from scratch using PADS.
• Evaluate and qualify high-performance components.
• Collaborate with RF, firmware, mechanical, PCB layout, manufacturing and test teams.

Skills

Hardware design

Board-level design

High-speed digital

Analog design

RF fundamentals

Signal integrity

Power integrity

Architecture development

Cross-functional collaboration

Telecom/optical networking

Tools

PADS

CST

SPICE

Job description

Senior Hardware Design Engineer Optical Transceivers

Job Description

This role leads the electrical hardware design of next-generation optical transceiver products for 1.2T and 1.6T optical networking platforms supporting critical hyperscale customer programs. You will serve as the primary owner of complex PCB-based hardware designs, driving the full lifecycle from architecture and schematic capture through PCB layout oversight, validation, and product release. You will work with minimal supervision while collaborating closely with RF, firmware, mechanical, PCB layout, manufacturing, and test teams to deliver high-performance, reliable optical networking hardware.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary electrical owner for new optical transceiver hardware programs, ensuring technical excellence and on-time delivery.
• Lead board-level hardware architecture and detailed hardware design activities for 1.2T and 1.6T optical networking platforms.
• Develop complete electrical schematics from scratch using PADS schematic capture tools.
• Evaluate, select, and qualify critical electronic components, including high-performance digital, analog, and RF devices.
• Review and interpret complex component datasheets to ensure proper device usage and performance.
• Design high-speed digital and analog circuits that meet stringent performance and reliability requirements.
• Support RF signal path design and optimization for high-speed communications and optical transceiver applications.
• Develop robust power distribution and power supply architectures, including high-performance power supply design.
• Apply best practices for signal integrity and power integrity across high-speed board-level designs.
• Own PCB hardware design from concept through release, including requirements definition, design reviews, and design sign-off.
• Work closely with internal PCB layout designers, providing detailed layout guidance and constraints for high-speed interfaces.
• Ensure proper routing and stack-up for high-speed RF and digital interfaces, including designs with bandwidths exceeding 100 GHz where applicable.
• Validate thermal, power, and signal integrity considerations during PCB layout and design verification.
• Partner with firmware, mechanical, manufacturing, and test teams to ensure seamless integration and manufacturability of hardware designs.
• Participate actively in cross-functional design reviews and engineering evaluations, presenting design decisions and trade-offs.
• Support troubleshooting and validation activities at the board and system level, including root-cause analysis of hardware issues.
• Perform analysis and validation of hardware designs, including lab bring-up, measurements, and correlation to simulations.
• Support simulation and modeling activities using tools such as CST and SPICE to verify signal integrity, power integrity, and RF performance.
• Ensure products meet customer specifications, performance targets, and reliability requirements throughout the development lifecycle.
• Contribute technical expertise to continuous improvement of design methodologies, tools, and best practices for high-speed optical networking hardware.

Essential Skills

• At least 5+ years of hardware design experience in board-level electronics.
• Proven experience leading board-level hardware development efforts from concept to release.
• Strong digital circuit design experience, including high-speed digital design.
• Strong analog circuit design experience for complex board-level systems.
• Hands-on experience developing schematics from scratch using professional EDA tools, preferably PADS.
• Experience selecting, evaluating, and qualifying electronic components for high-performance designs.
• Experience working closely with PCB layout teams and conducting thorough PCB design reviews.
• Experience with high-performance power supply design and power distribution architectures.
• Ability to read, interpret, and apply complex component datasheets in design decisions.
• Solid knowledge of high-speed digital design principles and best practices.
• Understanding of RF fundamentals and their application in board-level hardware.
• Working knowledge of signal integrity concepts for high-speed interfaces.
• Working knowledge of power integrity concepts for complex power distribution networks.
• Experience with board-level architecture development for communications or networking systems.
• Background in one or more of the following industries: telecommunications hardware, optical networking, fiber optics, optical communications, high-speed communications systems, or networking infrastructure.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Experience with optical transceiver hardware design is highly preferred.
• Experience with DCO optical modules is highly preferred.
• Experience with DSP-based communication systems is highly preferred.
• Experience supporting optical communication products or platforms is highly preferred.
• High-speed RF design experience, particularly for advanced communications systems.
• Familiarity with CST simulation software for electromagnetic and RF analysis.
• Experience using PADS for schematic capture in production hardware designs.
• Experience with SPICE-based simulation tools for circuit-level analysis.
• Experience working with designs that consider bandwidths exceeding 100 GHz.
• Experience integrating optical components into board-level designs.
• Experience with telecom hardware deployed in hyperscale data center or cloud environments.
• Experience designing or supporting 1.2T and 1.6T class networking products.
• Hands-on design verification and simulation experience across digital, analog, RF, and power domains.

Work Environment

The role offers a flexible work arrangement with remote work options combined with an expectation of being onsite approximately three days per week in the Malvern area. You will work in a collaborative, cross-functional engineering environment alongside RF, firmware, mechanical, PCB layout, manufacturing, and test teams, using modern EDA tools such as PADS, CST, and SPICE for schematic capture, simulation, and verification. The position centers on advanced optical networking and high-speed communications hardware, providing exposure to cutting-edge 1.2T and 1.6T optical transceiver technologies and hyperscale networking applications.

Job Type & Location

This is a Permanent position based out of Horsham, PA.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $150000.00 - $230000.00/yr.

Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job-related factors.

• PTO
• 401K
• 12% bonus
• stock plan
• sign-on bonus

Job Type & Location

This is a Permanent position based out of Horsham, PA.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Nov 2, 2026.

Workplace Type

This is a hybrid position in Horsham,PA.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications withoutregard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability,sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protectedby law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification oradjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability,please email [e-mail] for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in thecity and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicantswith arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as acondition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this lawshall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process,including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applicationsand qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, youacknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.