PIC Characterization Engineer

Darwin Recruitment; California; On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Darwin Recruitment is seeking a PIC Characterization Engineer to develop optical test strategies for silicon photonic devices. You will work with design, process, and packaging teams to evaluate prototype and production PICs and translate findings into design improvements.

You will build automated test setups, measure key metrics such as insertion loss and extinction ratio, and develop data analysis tools in Python/MATLAB. This role focuses on turning lab concepts into scalable products.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s, Master’s or PhD in Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Physics or related field.
• Strong experience characterising silicon photonic or integrated optical devices in industry or research.
• Hands-on with optical test equipment: tunable lasers, optical spectrum analyzers, high-speed oscilloscopes, power meters, BERTs.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute optical and electro-optical characterization plans for PICs and optical modules.
• Build, maintain and optimise automated optical test setups for wafer-level and packaged devices.
• Measure device performance: insertion loss, modulation efficiency, bandwidth, extinction ratio, coupling.
• Collaborate with PIC designers, process engineers and packaging teams to validate designs and improve performance.
• Analyse measurement data to identify trends and opportunities for design optimisation.
• Develop automated test software and data analysis tools using Python, MATLAB or LabVIEW.
• Support product qualification, reliability testing and new technology development through detailed experiments.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Cross-functional collaboration

Problem solving

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Physics or related

Tools

Python

MATLAB

LabVIEW

Job description

PIC Characterization Engineer

The Role

As a Photonic Integrated Circuit (PIC) Characterization Engineer, you’ll be responsible for developing and executing optical test strategies to evaluate the performance of advanced silicon photonic devices. Working closely with design, process and systems engineers, you’ll characterise prototype and production-ready PICs, providing critical feedback that drives design optimisation and product performance.

You’ll play a key role in bringing innovative photonic technologies from the lab into scalable commercial products.

What You’ll Do

• Develop and execute optical and electro‑optical characterisation plans for photonic integrated circuits and optical modules.
• Build, maintain and optimise automated optical test setups for wafer‑level and packaged device evaluation.
• Measure and analyse device performance including insertion loss, modulation efficiency, bandwidth, extinction ratio and optical coupling.
• Collaborate with PIC designers, process engineers and packaging teams to validate designs and improve device performance.
• Analyse measurement data to identify performance trends, process variation and opportunities for design optimisation.
• Develop automated test software and data analysis tools using Python, MATLAB or similar programming languages.
• Support product qualification, reliability testing and new technology development through detailed experimental analysis.

What We’re Looking For

• Bachelor’s, Master’s or PhD in Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Physics or a related discipline.
• Experience characterising silicon photonic or integrated optical devices in an industrial or research environment.
• Hands‑on experience with optical test equipment including tunable lasers, optical spectrum analysers, high‑speed oscilloscopes, power meters and bit‑error‑rate testers (BERTs).
• Strong understanding of fibre alignment, optical coupling and precision optical measurement techniques.
• Experience with Python, MATLAB or LabVIEW for test automation and data analysis.
• Knowledge of photonic device physics, optical communications and semiconductor fabrication processes.
• Excellent analytical, troubleshooting and cross‑functional collaboration skills.

Nice to Have

• Experience testing high‑speed modulators, photodetectors, optical transceivers or co‑packaged optics.
• Familiarity with wafer‑level testing, automated probe stations and high‑volume test methodologies.
• Experience with coherent optics, optical interconnects or silicon photonics platforms.
• Knowledge of RF or high‑speed electro‑optic measurements.
• Experience working with foundry‑based PIC development and product qualification.