Principal FPGA Engineer (DOD cleared)

Associates Systems LLC; Tucson (AZ); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health

Dental

Vision

PTO

Holidays

401K

Job summary

Associates Systems LLC is seeking a Principal FPGA Engineer in Tucson, AZ, to support the design and development of FPGA solutions for advanced defense systems. The ideal candidate will have over 5 years of FPGA engineering experience, proficiency in VHDL, and hands-on integration and debug skills. Responsibilities include developing and verifying FPGA designs, collaborating with engineers, and supporting technical documentation creation. This full-time position requires a secret clearance before starting and offers health benefits, 401K, and other perks.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of FPGA engineering experience
• VHDL coding and digital design experience
• Secret clearance or higher required prior to start

Responsibilities

• Develop and verify FPGA designs using VHDL
• Support FPGA architectures for system-level applications
• Work with circuit card designers and systems engineers to define interfaces and design requirements

Skills

FPGA engineering experience

VHDL coding

Experience with Xilinx, Altera, or Microsemi FPGA devices

Hands-on FPGA integration and debug

Delivery of FPGA solutions into system-level applications

Job description

All Qualified candidates will be responded to in 24 hours or less. Interim Secret required prior to start. Employment type: Full Time W-2 or Contract. Rate: open to Negotiation. Benefits: including Health, Dental Vision, PTO, Holidays, 401K, etc.

Principal FPGA Engineer

Location: Tucson, AZ
Schedule: On-Site
Clearance: Secret clearance or higher required prior to start

Role Summary

Seeking an FPGA Engineer to support the design, development, verification, and integration of FPGA solutions for advanced defense systems. This role supports the FPGA lifecycle from requirements and architecture through VHDL coding, simulation, place-and-route, integration, debug, and production release support.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and verify FPGA designs using VHDL.
• Support FPGA architectures for system-level applications.
• Translate system-level requirements into FPGA requirements.
• Perform simulation, synthesis, place-and-route, integration, and debug.
• Work with circuit card designers and systems engineers to define interfaces and design requirements.
• Support FPGA designs involving RF/EO DSP, controls, data links, embedded processing, processor interfaces, and gigabit serial interfaces.
• Create technical documentation, including requirements, verification plans, and user guides.
• Support internal and external technical reviews as needed.

Required Skills

• 5+ years of FPGA engineering experience.
• VHDL coding and digital design experience.
• Experience with Xilinx, Altera, or Microsemi FPGA devices and tool flows.
• Hands‑on FPGA integration and debug experience.
• Experience delivering FPGA solutions into system‑level applications.
• Ability to support FPGA work from requirements definition through integration and test.
• Secret clearance or higher required prior to start.

Preferred Skills

• Radar or image processing experience.
• Embedded systems experience using ARM, MicroBlaze, or Nios processors.
• Experience with gigabit serial interfaces or multi‑gigabit transceivers.
• SystemVerilog / UVM verification experience.
• Experience with emulation platforms such as Veloce.
• Strong technical documentation and review support experience.