Sr Principal Technical Support Engineer

FormFactor, Inc.; California (MO); On-site; USD 136,200 - 178,815; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision benefits

Life insurance

Disability coverage

401(k) with company match

ESPP (Employee stock purchase plan)

Paid time off

Profit-sharing bonuses

Flexible spending accounts

Job summary

FormFactor, Inc. in Livermore, California is seeking a Sr Principal Technical Support Engineer for Probe Cards to provide expert support across engineering, manufacturing, and field service, ensuring optimal performance and rapid issue resolution.

The role requires deep semiconductor test knowledge, hands-on probe card and wafer prober experience, on-site and remote support, and collaboration across teams; Mandarin or Korean language skills are a plus.

Qualifications

• Minimum 8 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree; or 6 years with a Master's; or 3 years with a PhD, or equivalent experience.
• Experience with probe cards or similar technologies preferred.
• Onsite and remote support experience across customer environments and cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical support for probe card products in production environments.
• Diagnose and resolve electrical, mechanical, and process-related issues impacting probe card performance.
• Support customers with yield excursions, electrical continuity issues, contact problems, and parametric anomalies during wafer sort.
• Act as primary escalation point for complex technical issues.
• Perform root cause analysis on probe card failures using data, measurements, and microscopy.
• Collaborate with engineering, manufacturing, and field service teams to drive corrective actions.

Skills

Analytical

Clean Room

Communication

Data Analysis

Electrical Measurements

Korean Language

Mandarin Chinese

Probe Cards

Probe Stations

Problem Solving

Semiconductors

Wafer Probing

Wafer Sort

Fast-paced Environment

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher

Job description

Forming Our Future together

FormFactor, Inc. (NASDAQ: FORM), is a leading provider of essential test and measurement technologies along the full semiconductor product life cycle - from characterization, modeling, reliability, and design de-bug, to qualification and production test. Semiconductor companies rely upon FormFactor's products and services to accelerate profitability by optimizing device performance and advancing yield knowledge. The company serves customers through its network of facilities in Asia, Europe, and North America.

Rooted in our core values - Focus on the Customer, Ownership & Accountability, Respectfully & Effectively Communicate, and Motivate & Develop People - we foster an environment where diverse perspectives are not only welcomed but celebrated. Everyone can make an impact here. Whether it's improving products, supporting customers, or positively influencing peers and the community, the contributions of our people matter.

Shift:

The regular hours for this position are day shift.

Job Description:

The Sr Principal Technical Support Engineer for Probe Cards provides expert-level technical support for FormFactor's advanced probe card products used in semiconductor wafer testing. This role serves as a key interface between customers, product engineering, manufacturing, and field service teams to ensure optimal performance, fast issue resolution, and continuous product improvement.

The ideal candidate combines deep knowledge of semiconductor test processes, probe card technology, and strong customer engagement skills. Hands-on mechanical ability and wafer prober operation skills for occasional on-site customer support is highly desirable. Ability to speak Mandarin or Korean is a plus.

Customer Technical Support

• Provide technical support for probe card products in production environments
• Diagnose and resolve electrical, mechanical, and process-related issues impacting probe card performance
• Support customers having Yield excursions, Electrical continuity issues, Contact problems (MEMS probe alignment, wear, contamination), and Parametric anomalies during wafer sort.
• Act as primary escalation points for complex technical issues.

Failure Analysis & Debug

Perform root cause analysis (RCA) on probe card failures using:

• ATE (Automated Test Equipment) data.
• Electrical measurements.
• Microscopy and inspection tools.
• Interpret wafer sort data to identify probe-related anomalies.
• Collaborate with FA lab to drive corrective actions.

Product & Process Expertise

• Develop deep expertise in FormFactor probe technologies (e.g., MEMS, cantilever, vertical probes).
• Provide guidance on: Probe card setup and optimization, Overdrive, contact force, and cleaning cycles, and Alignment procedures and maintenance practices.
• Support new product introductions (NPI) and customer qualifications.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Product engineering (design improvements), Manufacturing (process feedback, yield learning), and Field service teams (onsite troubleshooting).
• Drive corrective and preventive actions (CAPA).
• Participate in engineering change requests (ECR/ECO).

Onsite & Remote Support

• Provide onsite support at customer fabs and OSATs when required
• Conduct technical reviews and troubleshooting sessions with customers
• Deliver training on probe card operation, maintenance, and best practices

Data Analysis & Reporting

• Analyze large datasets from wafer test systems to identify trends and issues
• Create detailed technical reports, dashboards, and failure summaries
• Track key metrics such as Contact resistance, Yield loss attributable to probe cards, and MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures).

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with FormFactor probe cards or similar technologies.
• Knowledge of advanced nodes (e.g., FinFET, 5nm/3nm processes).
• Experience supporting high-volume manufacturing (HVM).
• Familiarity with yield engineering and test optimization.
• Prior field application or customer-facing experience.
• Automatic Wafer Prober user experience.
• Hands-on mechanical assembly / electrical debug experience.

Skills:

Analytical Analysis, Clean Room Environment, Communication, Customer-Focused, Data Analysis Tools, Debugging, Electrical Measurements, Korean Language, Mandarin Chinese Language, Microsoft Office, Probe Cards, Probe Stations, Problem Solving, Semiconductors, Wafer Probing, Wafer Sort, Working in a Fast-Paced Environment

Education & Experience:

Minimum of 8 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree; or 6 years and a Master's degree; or a PhD with 3 years experience; or equivalent experience| Required

Pay Range:

$136,200.00 - $178,815.00

Pay Range Explained:

This role in Livermore, California pays between $136,200.00 and $178,815.00 per year, depending on your experience, skills, and background. Pay may vary in other locations. We offer a full benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, disability coverage, a 401(k) with company match, employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), and paid time off. You'll also be eligible for quarterly profit-sharing bonuses and flexible spending or savings accounts.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

FormFactor is an equal opportunity employer. FormFactor complies with all national, state, and local laws that seek to promote equal opportunities for any applicant or employee without regard to age, race, color, gender, gender identity/expression, national origin, sexual orientation, religion, disability, marital status, pregnancy or related condition, military service, or any other legally protected characteristics. These protections apply to all aspects of employment, including but not limited to, recruitment, hiring, training, promotions, and compensation.

For roles that are designated as remote-eligible, employees cannot be located in:AL, AK, AR, DE, GA, HI, IL, IA, KY, LA, ME, MD, MS, MO, NE, NV, NJ, NM, ND, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, WV, WI, WY. This list is continuously evolving and being updated, please check back with us if the state you live in is on the exclusion list. A role is remote-eligible only when it is listed as "Remote" in the job location.