Principal Electrical Design Engineer

FormFactor Inc.•Livermore, CA

2d•$110,700 - $145,320

About The Position

The Principal Electrical Design Engineer develops production-ready electrical designs for advanced wafer probe card solutions, translating complex customer test requirements into accurate, manufacturable designs. The role applies electrical engineering knowledge, product expertise, and established design methodologies to manage design projects independently from requirements review through production release. As a key technical contributor, the engineer works directly with customers, vendors, and cross-functional teams to evaluate requirements, resolve design challenges, and deliver high-quality solutions. The position also supports continuous improvement of design tools and processes and provides technical guidance, training, and mentorship to developing engineers and designers.

Requirements

At least 5 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree, or 3 years with a Master’s degree, or a PhD without experience, or equivalent work experience.
Strong knowledge of electrical design fundamentals, including impedance control, power distribution networks (PDN), signal integrity, and digital and analog circuit design.
Solid understanding of physical routing concepts, including differential-pair routing, high-speed design considerations, and related PCB layout practices.
Ability to interpret complex technical requirements and translate them into practical electrical design solutions.
Experience developing and validating logical designs, netlists, schematics, or related electrical design documentation.
Strong analytical and structured problem-solving skills and attention to technical accuracy and quality.
Ability to independently manage multiple technical projects and priorities within established schedules.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including explaining complex technical information clearly to customers and cross-functional teams.
Ability to train, mentor, and provide technical guidance to less-experienced team members.
Ability to work independently and collaborate across engineering, manufacturing, commercial, and customer-facing organizations.

Nice To Haves

Knowledge of multilayer PCB and ceramic or organic substrate design and manufacturing processes.
Experience with Cadence Allegro, Siemens PADS, AutoCAD, or similar engineering design tools.
Knowledge of or experience with semiconductor test, wafer probing, semiconductor manufacturing, or related technologies.

Responsibilities

Develop production-ready probe card electrical designs that meet customer requirements, internal design standards, performance requirements, and manufacturing capabilities.
Interpret product specifications and apply electrical circuit fundamentals, design rules, manufacturing requirements, and established engineering processes to develop design solutions.
Use proprietary and commercially available design tools to translate customer technical requirements into electrical designs.
Create, analyze, and validate logical designs and netlists for production probe card applications.
Perform probe card design entry using customer technical specifications provided through schematics, spreadsheets, and other approved technical formats.
Apply knowledge of impedance control, power distribution networks (PDN), signal integrity, digital and analog circuits, and physical routing considerations to support design performance.
Review designs for technical accuracy, manufacturability, and compliance with applicable design requirements before release.
Translate customer requirements into clear electrical and logical design requirements for internal and external physical designers supporting space transformers and PCBs.
Evaluate technical requirements and recommend design approaches that balance electrical performance, manufacturability, schedule, and customer needs.
Interface with customers and vendors to understand technical requirements, resolve design questions, and provide engineering analysis and recommendations.
Provide technical input and feedback to Sales and Design teams during customer evaluations, feasibility assessments, and design execution.
Troubleshoot moderately complex electrical design issues and develop solutions using engineering analysis, data, and established design practices.
Coordinate assigned design projects independently from initial requirements review through production release.
Establish and manage project scope, design schedules, milestones, deliverables, and quality requirements.
Manage multiple concurrent design projects while balancing customer priorities, technical complexity, and business requirements.
Monitor design progress, identify technical or schedule risks, and coordinate with stakeholders to resolve issues.
Ensure assigned designs are completed accurately and in accordance with project, quality, and production requirements.
Collaborate with Sales, Marketing, PCB Design, Substrate Design, Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing, and other technical teams throughout the design lifecycle.
Partner with Manufacturing and related engineering teams to align designs with production capabilities and manufacturing requirements.
Coordinate with internal and external design resources to communicate technical requirements and resolve design issues.
Work with geographically dispersed teams to support design execution, customer evaluations, technical knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement.
Partner with design and automation teams to define, develop, evaluate, and validate improvements to design tools and processes.
Identify opportunities to improve design quality, efficiency, repeatability, and manufacturability.
Provide technical feedback on design tools based on production design experience and user requirements.
Develop and maintain design documentation, work instructions, technical guidelines, and engineering best practices.
Support implementation of improved tools, processes, and methodologies within the design organization.
Train and mentor new employees and developing team members on probe card design processes, tools, and engineering practices.
Develop technical documentation and structured training materials to support employee development and consistent design execution.
Provide day-to-day technical guidance to designers and engineering partners within areas of demonstrated expertise.
Share technical knowledge, lessons learned, and design best practices across the organization.