Integrated Photonics Design Engineer: High-Perf Components

HyperLight: Jobs; Cambridge (MA); On-site; AUD 171,000 - 320,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health coverage

401(k) retirement plan with employer-m

Paid Parental Leave

Life & disability insurance

Commuter benefits

Professional growth opportunities

Job summary

HyperLight is seeking an Integrated Photonics Design Engineer to lead end-to-end design of high-performance photonic components. You will collaborate with product teams and customers to translate requirements into robust devices, using FE tools for simulation and rigorous measurements to validate performance.

Ideal candidates have 5+ years of relevant experience or an advanced degree in a related field, with hands-on experience across fabrication and testing of PIC devices.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of relevant work experience or equivalent academic qualification (MS/PhD) in Electrical Engineering, Physics, or related field.
• Strong expertise with passive and/or active photonic device component design.
• Strong expertise in finite element analysis of PIC components using the listed tools.
• Hands-on measurements to characterize photonic integrated circuits with precision instruments.
• Experience with data analysis and statistics (e.g., DOE) using JMP or Python.
• Familiarity with the complete PIC engineering process from simulation to operation.
• Excellent organizational and communication skills and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end design and delivery of high-performance device components such as fiber couplers, optical taps, crossings, thermo-optic phase shifters, photodiodes, and high-speed modulators.
• Collaborate with product teams and customers to define design requirements.
• Simulate designs using FE tools and validate with rigorous measurement techniques.
• Analyze measurement and simulation data for performance and robustness.
• Advance fabrication process improvements for optimal device performance.
• Serve as a technical expert guiding engineering decisions and roadmap.

Skills

Photonic device design

FEA simulations

Data analysis & DOE

Communication & collaboration

Education

MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering or Physics

Tools

Lumerical

Tidy3D

COMSOL

Synopsys OptoDesigner

HFSS

Job description

HyperLight is at the forefront of the commercialization of thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) integrated photonics - a material and process technology that is enabling high-performance, scalable optical components across AI/datacom infrastructure, hyperscale computing, quantum computing, sensing, and beyond. Founded in 2018 and backed by leading venture capital, we’ve built a team and a platform focused on real-world mass deployment of TFLN photonics technology.

At the core of our work is the TFLN Chiplet™ platform — a modular, integrated architecture designed for scalability, manufacturability, and seamless integration into complex systems. It offers a rare combination of extraordinary performance and industrial readiness, enabling system developers across applications to deploy the technology fast and ready. We partner with our customers and suppliers from conceptualization, design, and prototyping phases, all the way through mass production to ensure smooth and rapid deployment of TFLN photonic technology.

We believe our platform is the key, in the golden age of integrated photonics, to empower humanity to the next level. We assembled a world class team covering engineering, business, and operations. We believe in the power of integrity, innovation, collaboration, and pragmatic solutions. Our diverse team thrives on challenges and is united by a shared commitment to excellence. We take pride in tackling complex challenges with curiosity, humility, and a deep sense of care for one another.

Our growing team is looking for an IntegratedPhotonics Design Engineer. We have several open positions with different seniority levels and focus, including passive optical component design, active component and modulator design, and product design.

As part of your responsibilities, you will:

• Collaborate with product teams and customers to define requirements for device components.
• Own the end-to-end design and delivery of high-performance, robust device components such as fiber couplers, optical taps, optical crossings, thermo-optic phase shifters, photodiodes, and high speed electro-optic modulators.
• Simulate component designs using FEA tools like Lumerical, Tidy3D, HFSS, CST, and COMSOL.
• Develop and perform rigorous measurement techniques to assess component performance.
• Analyze measurement and simulation data for performance and robustness.
• Collaborate to improve our fabrication processes for optimal device performance.
• Serve as a technical expert within HyperLight to guide our engineering decisions and technical roadmap.

• Either 5+ years of relevant work experience or equivalent experience through an advanced degree (M.S. or Ph.D.) in Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a related field.
• Strong expertise with passive and/or active photonic device component design, including hands-on development of multiple successful designs.
• Strong expertise in finite element analysis of PIC components using tools like Lumerical, Tidy3D, COMSOL, Synopsys OptoDesigner, etc.
• Extensive hands‑on experience performing measurements to characterize photonic integrated circuits using instruments like swept lasers, fiber alignment stages, VNAs, BERTs, oscilloscopes, etc.
• Extensive experience with data analysis and statistical methods such as design of experiments using tools like JMP or Python.
• Demonstrated record of innovation and achievement, e.g. product designs, publications, or patents.
• Familiarity with the entire photonic integrated circuit engineering process, including simulation, layout, fabrication, test, and device operation.
• Excellent organizational and communication skills
• Comfortable working with cross‑disciplinary teams
• Competitive market‑based compensation (Salary range $120,000 - $225,000)
• Comprehensive health coverage, including medical, vision, and dental plans for individuals and families
• 401(k) retirement plans with employee matching
• Paid Parental Leave
• Life and disability insurance
• Commuter benefits and subsidies
• Professional growth and mentorship opportunities

This role is in‑person at HyperLight’s office in Cambridge, MA. Authorization to work in the US is required.

HyperLight is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status. HyperLight is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities during our hiring process. If you need assistance or an accommodation, please contact us at [e-mail].