Defect Engineer

Wolfspeed•Marcy, NY

18h•Onsite

About The Position

Wolfspeed is seeking a Defect Engineer to provide technical and sustaining engineering support for the power semiconductor manufacturing line. This role involves implementing equipment and process modifications to enhance production efficiencies, manufacturing techniques, and production yields for existing products. The engineer will lead defect identification, classification, and root cause analysis to pinpoint physical and process-related failure modes that impact product quality and yield. Responsibilities include managing Material Review Board (MRB) activities, such as defect dispositioning, hold management, and technical review of non-conforming materials to ensure proper corrective actions. The role also involves performing Pareto analysis on defect data to prioritize improvement initiatives and systematically reduce top defect modes across manufacturing operations. Additionally, the engineer will develop and conduct statistical analyses like Design of Experiments (DOE) and Statistical Process Control (SPC) to identify the physical causes of failure leading to yield loss and quality improvement. Coordination of failure analysis activities with internal labs and external vendors, interpretation of results to identify defect mechanisms, and implementation of preventive measures are key. The engineer will also develop and maintain defect tracking systems and dashboards to monitor defect trends, escape rates, and the effectiveness of corrective actions. Strong communication skills are essential for collaborating with multiple teams, including product design and development, process, equipment, and quality engineering teams, to ensure process and design compatibility, implement defect reduction strategies, improve design for manufacturability, and enhance inline inspection capabilities. The role requires providing technical expertise on defect metrology and inspection techniques, such as optical inspection, SEM analysis, and other characterization methods relevant to semiconductor manufacturing.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering or applied science with 2-5 years of relevant experience or equivalent degree with relevant experience.
Experience with automated optical inspection tools.
Highly organized and detail oriented with the ability to manage multiple projects.
Ability to use critical thinking to make sound decisions.

Responsibilities

Provide technical and sustaining engineering support for the power semiconductor manufacturing line.
Implement equipment and process modifications to improve production efficiencies, manufacturing techniques, and production yields for existing products.
Lead defect identification, classification, and root cause analysis to determine physical and process-related failure modes impacting product quality and yield.
Manage Material Review Board (MRB) activities including defect dispositioning, hold management, and technical review of non-conforming materials to ensure proper corrective actions.
Perform Pareto analysis on defect data to prioritize improvement initiatives and drive systematic reduction of top defect modes across manufacturing operations.
Develop and conduct statistical analysis such as Design of Experiments (DOE) and Statistical Process Control (SPC) targeting physical cause of failure for yield loss and improving quality.
Coordinate failure analysis activities with internal labs and external vendors, interpreting results to identify defect mechanisms and implementing preventive measures.
Develop and maintain defect tracking systems and dashboards to monitor defect trends, escape rates, and effectiveness of corrective actions.
Partner with multiple teams in day-to-day activities.
Collaborate with product design and development personnel to ensure that processes and designs are compatible.
Partner with process, equipment, and quality engineering teams to implement defect reduction strategies, design for manufacturability improvements, and inline inspection enhancements.
Provide technical expertise on defect metrology and inspection techniques including optical inspection, SEM analysis, and other characterization methods relevant to semiconductor manufacturing.