Silicon Validation Manager

Synopsys, Inc.; Hillsboro, Northern (OR, KY); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Synopsys, Inc. seeks a Senior Silicon Validation Engineering Manager to lead a cross-functional team responsible for validating high-speed SerDes IP and bringing up silicon in a modern lab.

You will mentor engineers, review test plans, and ensure timely delivery of thorough validation data that informs design improvements and customer success. This role requires leadership, deep hands-on experience with high-speed circuits, and the ability to coordinate across design, product engineering, and IP

Qualifications

• 10+ years in analog IC design, validation, or characterization with high-speed circuits.
• 3+ years of people management leading engineering teams in validation or hardware engineering.
• Strong debugging skills with high-speed lab equipment.
• Deep understanding of SerDes architectures and signal integrity under real-world conditions.
• Experience with interfaces such as USB, PCIe, SATA, Ethernet; NRZ/PAM4 knowledge is a plus.
• Scripting or programming in MATLAB or Python for test automation and data analysis is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead a cross-functional Silicon Validation Engineering team on high-speed SerDes PHY validation.
• Oversee silicon bring-up, debug, and characterization in a state-of-the-art lab.
• Review characterization test plans, debug strategies, and test reports to meet timelines.
• Coordinate test board design and hardware solutions to support silicon testing.
• Mentor engineers, fostering technical rigor and knowledge sharing.
• Drive validation workflow improvements, test automation, and lab infrastructure.

Skills

High-speed SerDes

Team leadership

Analog IC design

Lab debugging

Test automation scripting

Protocol knowledge (USB PCIe Ethernet)

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

Oscilloscopes

Network analyzers

Signal generators

Custom test fixtures

Job description

Synopsys is the leader in engineering solutions from silicon to systems, enabling customers to rapidly innovate AI-powered products. We deliver industry-leading silicon design, IP, simulation and analysis solutions, and design services. We partner closely with our customers across a wide range of industries to maximize their R&D capability and productivity, powering innovation today that ignites the ingenuity of tomorrow.

You have spent years in the lab with oscilloscopes, network analyzers, and test boards that either prove your design works or send you back to the schematic. Managing a validation team is not about standing back and delegating, it is about knowing when a waveform looks wrong, when a debug path is heading into a dead end, and when your team needs air cover to finish the job right. You have debugged enough high-speed SerDes PHYs to know that the hardest problems do not show up in simulation, they show up at 3pm on a Friday when the board is misbehaving and the root cause could be anywhere from the substrate to the test fixture.

Leading people energizes you. You know how to manage a mix of analog designers who think in transfer functions and hardware engineers who think in bring-up sequences, and you can translate between those worlds without losing either group. You do not micromanage, but you also do not disappear. When someone is stuck, you ask the right question or point them to the right tool, and when a test plan is missing a corner case, you catch it before it becomes a schedule slip.

You have opinions about how validation should be done, and you are not afraid to push back when timelines, resources, or test coverage do not line up with reality. At Synopsys, you will lead a team building and validating some of the highest-speed analog IP in the industry, and what you deliver will directly enable customer success.

What You'll Be Doing

• Lead a cross-functional Silicon Validation Engineering team that includes analog designers and hardware engineers working on high-speed SerDes PHY validation
• Oversee silicon bring-up, debug, and characterization in a state-of-the-art test lab with high-speed equipment including oscilloscopes, network analyzers, and custom test boards
• Review and approve characterization test plans, debug strategies, and detailed test reports that meet project timelines and quality standards
• Coordinate the design and bring-up of test boards and hardware solutions to support silicon testing, debugging, and performance characterization
• Mentor team members on debugging techniques, circuit behavior analysis, and professional development, creating a culture of technical rigor and knowledge sharing
• Work with analog design, product engineering, and IP release teams to align validation milestones with product schedules and customer delivery commitments
• Drive process improvements in validation workflows, test automation, and lab infrastructure to increase team efficiency and test coverage

The Impact You Will Have

• Enable Synopsys customers to integrate high-speed SerDes IP into their SoCs with confidence, backed by thorough silicon validation and characterization data
• Reduce time to market for SerDes PHY IP by catching and resolving silicon issues early through disciplined debug and test execution
• Build a validation team that consistently delivers high-quality test reports, accurate performance data, and actionable insights that feed back into design improvements
• Strengthen the feedback loop between silicon validation and analog design, ensuring lessons learned in the lab directly improve next-generation IP
• Expand validation capabilities and lab infrastructure to support increasingly complex high-speed interfaces including NRZ, PAM4, and emerging protocols
• Mentor engineers who go on to lead validation efforts across Synopsys IP portfolios, raising the technical bar across the organization
• Contribute to Synopsys Silicon IP's reputation for delivering proven, production-ready IP that meets the performance, power, and reliability requirements of leading semiconductor companies

What You'll Need

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or related field, advanced degree preferred
• 10+ years of experience in analog IC design, validation, or characterization, with significant hands‑on work on high‑speed circuits
• 3+ years of people management experience leading engineering teams, ideally in a validation, test, or hardware engineering context
• Deep debugging skills and fluency with lab equipment including high-speed oscilloscopes, network analyzers, signal generators, and custom test fixtures
• Strong understanding of high-speed SerDes architectures, signal integrity, and analog circuit behavior under real-world test conditions
• Experience with interface protocols such as USB, PCI Express, SATA, Ethernet, and familiarity with NRZ and PAM4 encoding is a plus
• Scripting or programming experience with MATLAB, Python, or similar tools for test automation and data analysis is a plus

Who You Are

• You can walk into a lab, look at a waveform on the scope, and know within two questions whether the issue is in the silicon, the board, or the test setup
• You manage people by clearing obstacles, asking the right technical questions, and knowing when to let your team work and when to step in
• You write and review test reports that are detailed enough for a design team to act on and clear enough for a customer‑facing engineer to understand
• You push back when a test plan is incomplete, a schedule is unrealistic, or a corner case is being ignored, and you do it in a way that keeps the team moving forward
• You are comfortable presenting validation results, debug findings, and risk assessments to senior engineering leadership and product management
• You treat your lab and test infrastructure like a product, you invest in the right tools, maintain equipment, and build processes that scale as the team grows

The Team You'll Be Part Of

You will lead the Silicon Validation Engineering team within Synopsys Silicon IP, focused on high-speed SerDes PHY development. Your team works in a state-of-the-art test lab and collaborates closely with analog design, product engineering, and IP release teams. The group is responsible for bringing up silicon, characterizing performance across process and environmental corners, and delivering the validation data that enables customer adoption of Synopsys SerDes IP.

Rewards and Benefits

We offer a comprehensive range of health, wellness, and financial benefits to cater to your needs. Our total rewards include both monetary and non‑monetary offerings.