Senior Materials Research Engineer for Next-Gen AI Storage

WD; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 187,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid vacation time

Paid sick leave

Medical/dental/vision insurance

Life, accident and disabilityinsurance

401(k) plan

Tuition reimbursement

Transit benefits

Employee stock purchase plan

Job summary

WD's Western Digital Research in San Jose, California, invites a Ph.D.-level researcher to advance thin film technologies for superconducting qubits, non-volatile memories, and novel sensors. The role focuses on materials development and nanoscale devices.

You will perform hands-on experiments, deposit films in UHV, characterize properties with XRD/XRF/XPS/AFM, and collaborate with engineers to drive impactful results toward AI compute architectures.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in materials science, physics, electrical engineering, or closely related field.
• Expertise in non-volatile memory technologies, superconducting qubits, oxide semiconductor transistors, or novel sensors.
• Strong hands-on experience with UHV film deposition equipment.
• Strong hands-on experience with film characterization instrumentation and techniques such as XRD, XRF, XPS, AFM, and electrical transport as a function of temperature.
• Strong knowledge of nanofabrication and general device design and operation.
• Demonstrated ability to self-direct a research project.
• Strong written and oral communication skills, and the ability to work both independently and in a team environment.

Responsibilities

• Conduct hands-on, experimental research of thin films for emerging technologies such as superconducting qubits, non-volatile memories and novel sensor applications.
• Thin film growth by physical vapor deposition using ultra-high vacuum film deposition tools.
• Characterization of structural, electronic, optical, chemical, magnetic, thermal and mechanical film properties.
• Design of materials for integration into nanoscale devices.
• Collect, analyze, present and report film and device characterization data, results and conclusions.
• Work closely and collaborate within a team of engineers and support staff.

Skills

Self-directed research

Nanofabrication basics

Written & verbal communication

UHV deposition

Device characterization (XRD/XRF/XPS//

Team collaboration

Strong experimental skills

Education

Ph.D. in materials science and engineering, physics, or electrical engineering

Tools

XRD

XRF

XPS

AFM

Electrical characterization

Job description

WD's Western Digital Research in San Jose, California, invites a Ph.D.-level researcher to advance thin film technologies for superconducting qubits, non-volatile memories, and novel sensors. The role focuses on materials development and nanoscale devices.

You will perform hands-on experiments, deposit films in UHV, characterize properties with XRD/XRF/XPS/AFM, and collaborate with engineers to drive impactful results toward AI compute architectures.