Integrated Photonics Engineer — Space-Grade PICs

Azora; Phoenix (AZ); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous equity

Competitive healthcare

401(k)

Unlimited PTO

Job summary

Azora is building high-bandwidth photonic terminals for environments where fiber can't reach, including space missions and defense applications. This onsite/hybrid role focuses on designing, simulating, and characterizing integrated photonic devices and modules, shepherding them from foundry tape-out to packaging and system integration.

Successful candidates will have a PhD/MS in photonics or related fields, 3+ years of PIC design experience, and proficiency with photonic tools and foundry PDK

Qualifications

• MS/PhD in Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or related field (or equivalent industry experience).
• 3 years of hands-on PIC design and characterization experience.
• Proficiency with photonic simulation and layout tools (Lumerical, Synopsys, KLayout, IPKISS, or similar).
• Experience with at least one commercial foundry PDK and tape-out cycle.

Responsibilities

• Design and simulate integrated photonic components and circuits: waveguides, couplers, 90° hybrids, MZI modulators, phase shifters, photodetector interfaces, and on-chip filters.
• Own foundry tape-outs on silicon photonics, SiN, or InP platforms, including DRC, layout, and PDK workflows.
• Develop test plans and carry out wafer- and chip-level characterization: insertion loss, polarization behavior, bandwidth, responsivity, and phase noise.
• Work with packaging partners on fiber attach, hermetic packaging, and co-packaging with electronics for space environments.
• Integrate PICs into coherent and photon-counting receiver chains and validate end-to-end sensitivity against quantum-limit targets.
• Assess radiation tolerance and thermal behavior of photonic devices for flight applications.
• Collaborate with mixed-signal and FPGA engineers on driver/TIA interfaces and DSP requirements.

Skills

PIC design

Photonic simulation

Fabrication knowledge

Lab testing

Tape-out workflow

Education

MS/PhD in Photonics, EE, or related field

Tools

Lumerical

Synopsys

KLayout

IPKISS

Job description

Azora is building high-bandwidth photonic terminals for environments where fiber can't reach, including space missions and defense applications. This onsite/hybrid role focuses on designing, simulating, and characterizing integrated photonic devices and modules, shepherding them from foundry tape-out to packaging and system integration.

Successful candidates will have a PhD/MS in photonics or related fields, 3+ years of PIC design experience, and proficiency with photonic tools and foundry PDK