Photonics Process Development Engineer
About The Position
Great Sky is a technology startup working to rebuild AI from first principles through neuroscience-inspired hardware and algorithms. The Photonics Process Development Engineer will develop cryogenic photonic networks and contribute to the design of SiN-based passive photonic components. This high-ownership position takes responsibility for the R&D prototyping lifecycle, including hands-on device fabrication at a research cleanroom near the Boulder office, and has substantial influence on the pace and direction of hardware development. The role develops and optimizes fabrication processes for integrated photonic and superconducting devices, including SNSPDs. It involves cleanroom process development, metrology, yield and variation analysis, process documentation, design-rule and PDK maintenance, and close collaboration with design, test, packaging, and systems integration teams to connect device performance with fabrication metrics.
Requirements
- BS, MS, or PhD in physics, electrical engineering, optics, materials science, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
- Hands-on experience in microfabrication, nanofabrication, or semiconductor processing.
- Experience fabricating devices on at least one of these platforms: silicon photonics, silicon nitride, or superconducting electronics.
- Hands-on experience with core cleanroom processes such as e-beam or optical lithography, thin-film deposition (e.g., LPCVD, PECVD, sputtering), and reactive ion etching.
- Skill with process metrology and characterization tools such as SEM, AFM, ellipsometry, or profilometry.
- A track record of developing, documenting, and troubleshooting fabrication processes using data.
Nice To Haves
- Experience with SNSPD fabrication, including superconducting thin films such as NbN, NbTiN, or WSi.
- Experience with low-loss SiN waveguide processing, such as thick LPCVD SiN, stress management, high-temperature annealing, or CMP.
- Experience with heterogeneous or hybrid integration methods such as bump bonding or fusion bonding.
- Experience transferring processes to external fabs or working with foundries.
- Familiarity with GDS tools such as KLayout for mask preparation and pattern data checks.
- Previous fabrication experience in shared, multi-user facilities such as university cleanrooms, national laboratories, or advanced commercial R&D centers.
Responsibilities
- Own end-to-end prototype fabrication runs in a research cleanroom environment.
- Develop, run, and optimize manufacturable fabrication processes for integrated photonic and superconducting devices, including SNSPDs.
- Develop and characterize unit processes, including electron-beam and optical lithography, thin-film deposition, dry etching, and planarization.
- Perform in-line and post-fabrication metrology to control critical dimensions, film properties, and sidewall quality.
- Track yield, uniformity, and process variation, and lead root-cause analysis of fabrication issues.
- Write standard operating procedures and turn process flows into stable Processes of Record.
- Define and maintain design rules and layer-stack information for internal Process Design Kits.
- Work with design, test, packaging, and systems integration teams to correlate device performance with fabrication metrics and accelerate design-build-test-learn cycles.
Benefits
- Meaningful equity ownership in an early-stage deep tech company
- Employer-matched 401(k)
- Health, dental, vision, and life insurance
- Flexible PTO
- Support for ongoing learning, conference attendance, and skill development
