FPGA Hardware Design Engineer

Amentum•Hanover, MD

2d•$260,000 - $340,000

About The Position

This position is part of a three-contractor team working directly with a customer to develop custom solutions for technical challenges identified by field sites. The work supports multiple efforts involving hardware and software development across the data-processing lifecycle, with teams collaborating closely with customers to define requirements, identify solutions, and plan implementation. The engineer designs, develops, verifies, and supports FPGA-based solutions. Work includes implementing digital logic in VHDL, developing architectures with cross-functional teams, optimizing designs for performance, power, area, and resource utilization, and performing FPGA or ASIC placement and routing. The role also involves integrating designs with software, hardware, and system components; debugging design and hardware issues; documenting specifications, design flows, test plans, and results; and providing ongoing support for field systems. Depending on experience and assigned work, the position may also involve integrating placement-and-routing tools and libraries into a government CAD environment, supporting other physical designers, conducting approved reverse-engineering procedures on electronic components, and providing technical leadership or direction to other engineers. The normal schedule is Monday through Friday, with specific start and end times determined with the candidate and team. A TS/SCI clearance with Poly is required. The position requires a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or a related technical discipline, and 12 years of experience; five additional years of experience are required if the candidate does not have a bachelor's degree in a technical field.

Requirements

12 years of experience as a hardware design engineer in integrated circuit or microelectronic component design or reverse engineering of the same.
10 years of experience programming in VHDL.
8 years of experience programming Xilinx FPGAs, with any combination of Virtex-II Pro, Virtex-4, Virtex-5, or Virtex-6.
5 years of experience programming on Linux platforms.
5 years of experience with Xilinx ISE, Synplify Pro, and Modeltech ModelSim.
8 years of experience, at 50% allocation, writing pin-level VHDL and clocking constraint files.
1 year of experience programming in one or more of Perl, sh, bash, or Python.
5 years of experience using Linux or Unix for day-to-day activities.
Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or a related technical discipline from an accredited college or university; five additional years of experience are required if the candidate does not have a bachelor's degree in a technical field.
TS/SCI clearance with Poly.
Ability to comply with company drug and alcohol policies and successfully complete the drug screening process, including screening for marijuana and other federally controlled substances where applicable.
Ability to meet applicable safety, quality, environmental, operational, and procedure-compliance responsibilities.

Nice To Haves

Experience writing Interface Control Documents (ICDs).
Experience with Microsoft Office tools, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Three or more years of experience with one or more revision-control applications: Git, Subversion (SVN), CVS, or ClearCase.
One or more years of experience generating and documenting system-level component design specifications using a UML-based tool, such as Confluence/Gliffy.
Two or more years of experience with test-driven development.

Responsibilities

Design, develop, and test FPGA-based point solutions using HDL such as VHDL and advanced design tools.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define requirements and develop architectures.
Implement complex digital logic and optimize designs for performance, power, area, and resource utilization.
Verify designs using simulation tools and debug and troubleshoot design issues.
Perform FPGA or ASIC placement and routing using appropriate tools and libraries.
Document design specifications, placement-and-routing flows, test plans, and test results.
Integrate FPGA-based solutions with software, hardware, and system components and support timely delivery.
Maintain detailed documentation, debug hardware issues, and provide ongoing support for field systems.
Assist with designing new products and processes and improving and maintaining existing products.
Conduct design analysis on components or assemblies to help ensure designs are cost-efficient, manufacturable, and reliable.
Communicate with engineering personnel to coordinate interrelated designs and project completion.
Integrate placement-and-routing tools, tool updates, and design libraries into the Government's computer-aided design environment and document their use.
Assist physical designers with placement-and-routing tasks and work with tool and library vendors to address design challenges.
Perform de-processing of electronic components and retrieve stored firmware or software using approved reverse-engineering procedures; develop improved procedures as needed.
As applicable to the assignment and experience level, lead designs, provide technical leadership, direct and check other hardware design engineers' work, and provide technical guidance on complex projects.
As applicable, oversee reverse engineering of electronic components and develop procedures for new component types.
Comply with applicable safety, quality, environmental, operational, and customer-contract requirements and complete required safety training and responsibilities.