Principal Hardware Design Engineer

F5 Networks, Inc; United States; On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

F5 Networks, Inc. seeks a Principal Hardware Design Engineer to lead the development of advanced hardware solutions for high‑performance electronic systems. You will architect, implement, and validate complex subsystems, mentoring teams and driving design excellence across projects.

Key focus areas include high‑speed digital/analog design, signal integrity, power integrity, and EMI/thermal considerations, with extensive experience in CPLDs, FPGAs, and routing for backplanes and chassis.

Qualifications

• BS in Electrical Engineering or equivalent required.
• 10+ years of experience in electrical hardware design for high-speed digital, analog, and mixed-signal systems.
• Strong troubleshooting and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Proficiency with schematic capture and hardware design tools.
• Experience with CPLD/FPGA design and Verilog HDL.

Responsibilities

• Lead system-level hardware design for new products and architecture definitions.
• Drive design for manufacturability, testability, and reliability.
• Mentor engineers and review work for quality and efficiency.
• Present technical results and coordinate with suppliers and manufacturing partners.
• Develop schedules and ensure documentation and testing are completed.

Skills

10+ years hardware design experience

Signal integrity

Power integrity

Thermal management

Schematic capture tools Cadence/Altium

Mentor/leadership

Verilog HDL

X86 motherboard design

High-speed serial interfaces DDR4/5/PC

PCIe Gen5

Ethernet 100G SerDes

FPGA design (Altera/Xilinx)

VR power supply design

Memory/NVMe/NAND/NOR

System-level integration (chassis/back

Education

BS in Electrical Engineering or equivalent

MS in Electrical Engineering desirable

Tools

Cadence

Altium

Mentor Graphics

Verilog HDL

Hyperlynx SI/PI

HSPICE

Ansys HFSS

Agilent ADS

Sisoft QCD

BIOS/ BMC/Secure Boot/IPMI/Redfish

Job description

At F5, we strive to bring a better digital world to life. Our teams empower organizations across the globe to create, secure, and run applications that enhance how we experience our evolving digital world. We are passionate about cybersecurity, from protecting consumers from fraud to enabling companies to focus on innovation.

Everything we do centers around people. That means we obsess over how to make the lives of our customers, and their customers, better. And it means we prioritize a diverse F5 community where each individual can thrive.

Job Description

F5 is seeking an accomplished Principal Hardware Design Engineer to lead the development of advanced hardware solutions for high-performance electronic systems. As a key member of the Hardware Development Team, you will drive the design of complex electrical subsystems from concept through production release, providing technical leadership, mentoring, and strategic input across projects. This role requires deep expertise in multiple areas of hardware design and the ability to influence architecture decisions, ensure design excellence, and foster innovation.

Key Responsibilities:

• Uphold F5’s Business Code of Ethics and promptly report violations of the Code or other company policies.

• Act as a technical authority, independently determining methods and procedures for new or complex assignments.

• Lead system-level hardware design for new products, including architecture definition, functional specifications, and requirements development.

• Drive design for manufacturability, testability, and reliability across all phases of development.

• Research and evaluate emerging technologies to enhance existing products and guide new product directions.

• Oversee and mentor engineers, providing technical guidance and reviewing work to ensure quality and efficiency.

• Conduct internal and external technical presentations and disseminate knowledge within the Hardware Development Team.

• Develop and maintain schedules for deliverables, ensuring timely and high-quality documentation and testing.

• Interface with suppliers and manufacturing partners for validation and issue resolution.

• Author and implement designs for programmable logic devices (CPLDs) using Verilog HDL when required.

• Support sustaining engineering for legacy products and assist in manufacturing training for new designs.

• Participate in design reviews and contribute to continuous improvement of design processes and standards.

Qualifications:

Required:

• Understand and comply with F5 internal processes and requirements.

• BS in Electrical Engineering or equivalent required; MS in Electrical Engineering is desirable.

• 10+ years of experience in electrical hardware design for high-speed digital, analog, and mixed-signal systems.

• Advanced troubleshooting skills at board and system levels.

• Strong understanding of signal integrity, power integrity, EMI/EMC, and thermal considerations.

• Proficiency with schematic capture and hardware design tools – Cadence, Altium, Mentor Graphics.

• Proficiency with Verilog HDL programming for CPLD design.

• Extensive experience in the following:

• Intel or AMD x86 motherboard design

• High-speed serial interfaces – DDR4/5, USB2/3, PCIe Gen5, Ethernet (100G+ SerDes)

• Electrical design for Network Switches

• Electrical design for Altera and Xilinx FPGAs

• CPU multi-phase VR power supply design and validation

• Memory/storage technologies – NAND/NOR, SRAM, DRAM, HBM, SATA, NVMe

• Signal integrity modeling, simulation, and validation

• Power integrity modeling, simulation, and validation

• System-level integration, including chassis and backplane designs

• Expertise with SI simulation tools – Hyperlynx SI/PI, HSPICE, Ansys HFSS, Agilent ADS, Sisoft QCD

• Familiarity with low-level FW/SW components, processes, and standards – BIOS, BMC, Secure Boot, IPMI, Redfish, authentication, encryption

• Familiarity with relevant industry standards and compliance requirements.

• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.

Preferred:

• Experience with regulatory compliance (UL, CE, FCC) and reliability testing.

The Job Description is intended to be a general representation of the responsibilities and requirements of the job. However, the description may not be all-inclusive, and responsibilities and requirements are subject to change.

Equal Employment Opportunity

It is the policy of F5 to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and employment applicants without regard to unlawful considerations of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, sensory, physical, or mental disability, marital status, veteran or military status, genetic information, or any other classification protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws. This policy applies to all aspects of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, job assignment, compensation, promotion, benefits, training, discipline, and termination. F5 offers a variety of reasonable accommodations for candidates. Requesting an accommodation is completely voluntary. F5 will assess the need for accommodations in the application process separately from those that may be needed to perform the job. Request by contacting [e-mail].