Photonic IC Design Engineer: Chip-to-System Integration

Telemetry Today LLC; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity in the company

Paid time off

Medical/dental/vision coverage

Life insurance

Paid parental leave

Job summary

K2 Space is seeking a Photonic IC Design Engineer to own chip-to-system integration for photonic PICs and their packaging for space missions. You will design and tape out PICs on advanced photonics platforms, and work closely with RF, ASIC, and manufacturing teams to ensure performance in extreme environments.

You will contribute to radiation-qualified designs, drive test plans, and partner with external foundries and packaging houses to scale photonic hardware for space applications.

Qualifications

• PhD or MS in electrical engineering, optics, physics, or related field; or Bachelor's with equivalent experience.
• PIC designs taken through tapeout on photonics platforms with lab characterization.
• Hands-on work at the chip boundary: optical I/O design with fiber attach or packaging, or high-speed modulator and RF design measured with a VNA.
• Photonic device simulation and layout tools; Python for automation and data analysis.

Responsibilities

• Design, simulate, and lay out PIC devices and circuits from specification to tapeout.
• Design high-speed modulators and co-design with RF and ASIC engineers.
• Implement bias and tuning control in hardware and bring up closed-loop bias.
• Set optical I/O requirements and integrate into floorplan with designers.
• Design mechanical package in 3D CAD for PIC carriers, fiber arrays, and fixtures.
• Drive qualification campaigns (radiation, thermal-vacuum, vibration) with test facilities.
• Define test plans and metrics; collaborate with test and automation teams for data pipeline.
• Carry high-speed electrical path through the package and present designs at reviews.

Education

PhD or MS in electrical engineering, optics, physics, or related field, or Bachelor's degree with equivalent experience

Tools

PIC designs through tapeout on photonics platforms

Photonic device simulation tools (Meep, Tidy3D, Lumerical FDTD, FEM, EME)

Layout tools (KLayout, gdsfactory, Cadence)

Python for automation and data analysis

Job description

K2 Space is seeking a Photonic IC Design Engineer to own chip-to-system integration for photonic PICs and their packaging for space missions. You will design and tape out PICs on advanced photonics platforms, and work closely with RF, ASIC, and manufacturing teams to ensure performance in extreme environments.

You will contribute to radiation-qualified designs, drive test plans, and partner with external foundries and packaging houses to scale photonic hardware for space applications.