Sr Principal Electrical Engineer

Renesas Electronics; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive benefits

Job summary

Renesas Electronics seeks a Powertrain Design Engineer to lead the development of test vehicles for high-current BCD and LV GaN technologies, guiding from concept to silicon bring-up while coordinating with process, product, and applications teams.

The role involves defining test vehicles, designing power stages, selecting devices, and validating performance under realistic switching and thermal conditions.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Microelectronics, or related field.
• 10+ years of hands-on design experience in power semiconductor devices, analog/power ICs, or power electronics.
• Strong working knowledge of power conversion topologies (buck, boost, multiphase/interleaved converters, half-bridge, DrMOS/Intelli-Phase architectures) and how topology choices drive device requirements.
• Solid understanding of power device physics and trade-offs across BCD and GaN, including RDS(ON), switching loss, gate charge, breakdown/avalanche behavior, and thermal characteristics.
• Demonstrated experience designing test structures or test chips/vehicles for process technology development.
• IC-level design and layout experience, including parasitic-sensitive layout for high-current switching nodes.
• Experience taking designs beyond die to module, package, or board level.
• Proficiency with circuit simulation tools (SPICE or equivalent) and device/TCAD concepts.
• Ability to interpret and specify absolute maximum ratings, transient tolerance, and protection thresholds.
• Strong lab skills: bring-up, debug, and characterization using scopes, tracers, power analyzers, and thermal imaging.

Responsibilities

• Define, design, and drive test vehicles for high-current BCD and LV GaN technologies, including device test structures and full-function demonstration circuits.
• Translate process capability targets and roadmap requirements into test vehicle architecture and specifications.
• Design and simulate power stage circuits (buck/boost, multi-phase, half-bridge, gate drivers) for realistic switching/thermal validation.
• Select and characterize power devices (LDMOS, trench MOSFETs, LV GaN HEMTs, rectifiers) for test structures.
• Perform IC-level layout and design for test structures, including parasitic-aware switch nodes and gate-drive paths.
• Extend designs to module/package level via co-design of power stages with packaging, magnetics, and PCB layout.
• Develop test plans covering DC, switching, efficiency, transient response, and stress margins.
• Lead or support silicon bring-up, debug, and correlation of results with simulations and targets.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to close the loop from process data to product-ready specs.
• Document design methodology, test-vehicle results, and characterization data for qualification.

Skills

Power electronics

Device physics

Test vehicle design

IC/layout design

Lab testing

Oscilloscopes

Education

Bachelor's or Master’s in Electrical Engineering or related field

Tools

SPICE

TCAD

Oscilloscopes

Curve tracers

Thermal imaging

Power analyzers

Job description

We are seeking a Powertrain Design Engineer to lead the development of test vehicles supporting our high-current BCD (Bipolar-CMOS-DMOS) and low-voltage GaN power process and product portfolios. This role owns test vehicle definition, circuit and layout design, and characterization planning from concept through silicon bring-up, working closely with process development, product engineering, and applications teams. The ideal candidate has hands‑on experience designing power devices and circuits at both the IC and module level, and is fluent in the power topologies these test vehicles are ultimately intended to support.

Key Responsibilities

• Define, design, and drive execution of test vehicles (TVs) for high‑current BCD and LV GaN process technologies, including device test structures, scaled power stages, and full‑function demonstration circuits.
• Translate process capability targets and product roadmap requirements into test vehicle architecture and specifications.
• Design and simulate power stage circuits (e.g., synchronous buck/boost, multiphase, half‑bridge/DrMOS, gate drivers) used to validate device performance under realistic switching and thermal conditions.
• Select and characterize power devices (LDMOS, trench MOSFETs, LV GaN HEMTs, Schottky/sync rectifiers) for inclusion in test structures, working with device/process engineering on layout‑dependent tradeoffs (RDS(ON), Qg, breakdown voltage, SOA).
• Perform IC‑level layout and design for test structures, including parasitic‑aware layout for switch nodes, current sensing, and gate drive paths.
• Extend designs to module/package level as needed — co‑design of power stages with packaging, magnetics, and PCB layout for evaluation boards and system‑level test vehicles.
• Develop test and characterization plans covering DC parametrics, switching performance, efficiency, transient response, and voltage/current stress margins (including switch‑node ringing and abs‑max validation).
• Lead or support silicon bring‑up, debug, and correlation of measured results against simulation and design targets.
• Collaborate cross‑functionally with process integration, reliability, product/applications engineering, and test engineering to close the loop from process split data to product‑ready specifications.
• Document design methodology, test vehicle results, and characterization data to support technology qualification and product development decisions.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Microelectronics, or related field.
• 10+ years of hands‑on design experience in power semiconductor devices, analog/power ICs, or power electronics.
• Strong working knowledge of power conversion topologies (e.g., buck, boost, multiphase/interleaved converters, half‑bridge, DrMOS/Intelli‑Phase‑style architectures) and how topology choices drive device requirements.
• Solid understanding of power device physics and trade‑offs across BCD process technologies and GaN (particularly low‑voltage GaN HEMTs) — including RDS(ON), switching loss, gate charge, breakdown/avalanche behavior, and thermal characteristics.
• Demonstrated experience designing test structures or test chips/vehicles for process technology development (not just product design) — comfortable defining what a process node needs to prove out.
• IC‑level design and layout experience, including parasitic‑sensitive layout practices for high‑current switching nodes.
• Experience taking designs beyond the die level to module, package, or board level (e.g., power module co‑design, evaluation board layout, thermal/electrical co‑design).
• Proficiency with circuit simulation tools (SPICE or equivalent) and familiarity with device/TCAD simulation concepts.
• Ability to interpret and specify absolute maximum ratings, transient voltage tolerance, and protection thresholds (OVP/UVP/OCP/OTP) relevant to power stage reliability.
• Strong lab skills: bring‑up, debug, and characterization using oscilloscopes, curve tracers, power analyzers, and thermal imaging.

Additional Information

Renesas is an embedded semiconductor solution provider driven by its Purpose, To Make Our Lives Easier.

At Renesas, TAGIE is our culture, grounded in being Transparent, Agile, Global, Innovative, and Entrepreneurial. It shapes how we work, grow and deliver on our purpose together. This collaborative spirit and mindset drive our semiconductor technology to transform industries and impact millions of lives.

We believe in rewarding our employees with a competitive benefits package alongside their salary. More information will be provided during the hiring process.

Renesas Electronics is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer, committed to supporting diversity and fostering a work environment free of discrimination on the basis of sex, race, religion, national origin, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, military status, veteran status, or any other basis protected by law. For more information, please read ourDiversity & Inclusion Statement .

Renesas Electronics deals with dual‑use technology that is subject to U.S. export controls regulations. Under these regulations it may be necessary for Renesas to obtain U.S. government export license prior to release of technology to certain persons. The decision whether or not to file or pursue an export license application is at the sole discretion of Renesas.