Hardware Development Engineering

Western Digital • San Jose, CA

7d

About The Position

Western Digital is seeking an early-career engineer to join its wafer manufacturing team and support photolithography process development, optimization, and sustaining activities in high-volume semiconductor manufacturing. The engineer will work with experienced engineers, technicians, equipment specialists, and cross-functional partners to develop and sustain advanced lithography processes. The position offers technical growth, mentorship, and career development, along with hands-on experience with lithography systems and semiconductor manufacturing equipment.

Requirements

• B.S. or M.S. degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemistry, or a related technical discipline.
• Experience in semiconductor manufacturing, microfabrication, research laboratories, or other technology-focused environments.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to interpret data and identify trends.
• Experience with data analysis tools such as JMP, Python, SQL, Minitab, SAS, MATLAB, or similar platforms.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work effectively independently and in a collaborative team environment.
• Demonstrated initiative, curiosity, learning agility, and ownership of assigned projects.

Nice To Haves

• Internship, co-op, research, or manufacturing experience in semiconductor processing or wafer fabrication.
• Familiarity with cleanroom environments and semiconductor manufacturing practices.
• Exposure to photolithography concepts such as photoresist coating, exposure, development, overlay, and critical dimension control.
• Knowledge of Design of Experiments (DOE), Statistical Process Control (SPC), and Advanced Process Control (APC).
• Experience with scripting, automation, machine learning, or data visualization tools.

Responsibilities

• Support photolithography process development, optimization, and sustaining activities for high-volume manufacturing.
• Monitor process and equipment performance through statistical analysis and data-driven problem solving.
• Participate in root cause investigations and corrective actions for process excursions, yield issues, and equipment-related events.
• Execute experiments and process characterizations using Design of Experiments (DOE) methodologies.
• Develop and implement improvements to yield, cycle time, quality, and manufacturing robustness.
• Support qualification of new equipment, materials, and process technologies.
• Create and maintain process documentation, operating procedures, and engineering reports.
• Train and support technicians, manufacturing personnel, and equipment owners.
• Collaborate with Integration, Yield Enhancement, Metrology, Maintenance, Manufacturing, and Product Engineering teams.
• Use Statistical Process Control (SPC), Advanced Process Control (APC), and data analytics tools to monitor and improve critical process metrics.

Benefits

• Paid vacation time
• Paid sick leave
• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Life insurance
• Accident insurance
• Disability insurance
• Flexible spending and health savings accounts
• Employee assistance program
• Supplemental life and AD&D coverage
• Legal plan
• Pet insurance
• Critical illness coverage
• Accident and hospital indemnity coverage
• Tuition reimbursement
• Transit benefits
• Applause Program
• Employee stock purchase plan
• WD Savings 401(k) Plan
• Potential eligibility for bonuses under the Short Term Incentive Plan or Sales Incentive Plan
• Potential eligibility for the Long-Term Incentive program, which may include restricted stock units or cash equivalents
• Potential eligibility for restricted stock unit awards for new hires

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level