Senior Software Systems Engineer - USA

Nearfield Instruments; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Nearfield Instruments is seeking a Senior Software Systems Engineer to serve as the technical bridge between customers, the U.S. field organization, and RTD software engineering teams.

The role focuses on understanding how the software platform performs in real-world manufacturing environments and driving enhancements that improve system functionality, stability, usability, and customer productivity. This is not a coding position and requires strong troubleshooting and communication skills.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in a technical discipline (e.g., Computer/Electrical Engineering, CS, Physics).
• 8+ years of experience supporting complex semiconductor capital equipment or similar systems.
• Experience troubleshooting software in hardware-based environments and with field deployments.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary software systems expert supporting Nearfield products at customer sites.
• Troubleshoot software, system integration, and platform issues across complex metrology equipment.
• Install, configure, validate, and support software releases, upgrades, patches, and service packs.
• Collaborate with RTD software teams to investigate defects and validate fixes.
• Translate customer requirements into clear functional improvement requests.
• Capture customer feedback and validate new software functionality in the field.
• Travel to customer locations within the United States and occasionally to the Netherlands.

Skills

Troubleshooting

Customer-facing

Software architecture

Distributed software

Windows

Linux

Networking

Databases

Root-cause analysis

Cross-functional teamwork

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree in a relevant technical field

Job description

Nearfield Instruments is a scale‑up that brings together some of the world's most creative minds in science and technology to develop revolutionary high-throughput Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) systems. Our technology enables atom-scale resolution 3D metrology at production-level throughput, helping the world's leading semiconductor manufacturers solve their most challenging process control problems.

We design, develop, integrate, market, and support advanced metrology systems that enable next‑generation semiconductor manufacturing. As our business continues to expand across the United States and Asia, we are seeking experienced professionals who thrive in technically demanding customer environments.

What will you be doing?

The Senior Software Systems Engineer serves as the technical bridge between our customers, the U.S. field organization, and our Research & Technology Development (RTD) software engineering teams.

The role focuses on understanding how the software platform performs in real-world manufacturing environments, identifying opportunities for improvement, and driving software enhancements that improve system functionality, stability, usability, and customer productivity. This is not a software development or coding position.

You will work directly on customer systems to diagnose software-related issues, validate new software releases, install upgrades and patches, and partner with our development organization to ensure field experience is incorporated into future software releases.

This position requires significant customer interaction, exceptional troubleshooting skills, and the ability to translate operational challenges into well-defined software requirements for our engineering teams.

Specific responsibilities include:

• Serve as the primary software systems expert supporting Nearfield products at customer sites.
• Troubleshoot software, system integration, and platform issues across complex semiconductor metrology equipment.
• Install, configure, validate, and support software releases, upgrades, hot fixes, and service packs.
• Work closely with RTD software engineering teams to investigate software defects and validate corrective actions.
• Capture customer feedback and translate operational requirements into clear functional improvement requests.
• Validate new software functionality in the field prior to broad customer deployment.
• Support root cause investigations involving software, hardware interfaces, automation, and system performance.
• Partner with Applications, Service Engineering, Program Management, and Product Development to improve overall product performance.
• Develop troubleshooting guides, best known methods (BKMs), and field documentation that improve global service effectiveness.
• Assist with customer demonstrations, product evaluations, and new product introductions from a software systems perspective.
• Support customer escalations requiring detailed software diagnostics and cross-functional coordination.
• Travel as required to customer locations within the United States and periodically to Nearfield headquarters in the Netherlands.

What do we require from you?

Our future Senior Software Systems Engineer combines strong technical troubleshooting capabilities with excellent customer-facing communication skills.

You enjoy solving complex system problems, understanding how software interacts with advanced hardware platforms, and working with development organizations to continuously improve product performance.

Desired qualifications include:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, or a related technical discipline.
• 8+ years of experience supporting complex semiconductor capital equipment or similarly sophisticated technical systems.
• Strong understanding of software architecture within hardware-based systems.
• Experience troubleshooting distributed software applications, Windows and/or Linux environments, networking, databases, and system communications.
• Experience supporting software releases, upgrades, patches, and version management.
• Ability to isolate complex software versus hardware interactions during root cause analysis.
• Experience working directly with software development organizations to define requirements and validate fixes.
• Strong understanding of semiconductor manufacturing, metrology equipment, automation, or capital equipment environments is highly preferred.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively with customers, field engineers, and software developers.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple technical priorities simultaneously.
• Ability to work independently while coordinating activities across global engineering teams.

What can you expect from us?

A technically challenging role where you can apply your expertise to some of the world's most advanced semiconductor manufacturing technologies.

You will become a key member of our U.S. technical leadership team, working directly with customers while influencing the evolution of Nearfield's software platform. Your field experience will directly shape future product capabilities, improve customer productivity, and accelerate adoption of our technology worldwide.

At Nearfield Instruments, we believe our people are our greatest competitive advantage. We rely on each other's expertise, encourage innovation, and foster an environment where collaboration drives exceptional results.

If you are passionate about solving complex technical problems and want to help define the future of semiconductor metrology, we look forward to hearing from you.