Senior Photonics Design Engineer - Semiconductor Optical Amplifier (SOA) / Active Devices)

Voyant Photonics•New York, NY

11d•$140,000 - $240,000•Onsite

About The Position

Voyant Photonics is hiring a Senior Photonics Design Engineer to develop active and passive silicon photonic components, with a focus on Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers (SOAs), optical switches, modulators, and photodetectors. The role covers component development from concept and simulation through layout, foundry tapeout, and characterization. The engineer will develop SOA and other active-device designs, optimize optical performance and fabrication tolerance, and contribute to PICs containing hundreds to thousands of integrated optical devices. The position involves electromagnetic, thermal, and multiphysics simulation; component and test-structure layout for III-V/Si heterogeneous integration; foundry tapeouts and design verification; optical characterization and wafer-level measurement analysis; and collaboration with system-level designers, layout engineers, manufacturing partners, and a multidisciplinary team. The work is primarily in person at Voyant’s lab and office in Midtown Manhattan. The environment is hands-on, fast-paced, high-trust, and high-accountability, with flexible scheduling around customer calls across time zones. Voyant provides catered lunch every day at headquarters.

Requirements

Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, Photonics, or a related field, with at least 2 years of relevant experience.
Strong background in silicon photonic component design, including expertise in active devices, III-V/Si integration, and SOA physics and simulation.
Demonstrated experience designing integrated photonic devices and taking designs through silicon photonics foundry tapeouts.
Solid understanding of waveguide optics, photonic device physics, and semiconductor fabrication processes.
Proficiency with photonic simulation tools such as Ansys Lumerical, Tidy3D, COMSOL, or equivalent.
Ability to analyze experimental characterization data and translate results into design improvements.
Strong problem-solving skills, technical independence, and ability to collaborate in a multidisciplinary team.

Nice To Haves

Experience designing SOAs, gain blocks, lasers, and other hybrid silicon-III/V components.
Experience with silicon nitride waveguides, multilayer photonic integration, or heterogeneous photonic platforms.
Experience with photonic component design across different wavelength bands, particularly O-band and C-band.
Proficiency in Python or MATLAB for simulation automation, design optimization, and data analysis.
Experience with wafer-level characterization, fabrication variation analysis, or statistical device performance modeling.

Responsibilities

Design, simulate, and optimize active and passive silicon photonic components, including SOAs, optical switches, modulators, and photodetectors.
Develop SOA and active-device designs, optimizing small-signal gain, saturation power, noise figure, bandwidth, and fabrication tolerances.
Perform electromagnetic, thermal, and multiphysics simulations to model carrier dynamics, heat dissipation, and nonlinearities across active waveguide geometries.
Design component layouts and dedicated test structures for III-V/Si heterogeneous integration, coordinating with layout engineers on thermal management and electrical contact routing.
Drive component development through foundry tapeouts, including design reviews, verification, and coordination with manufacturing partners.
Analyze optical characterization data and wafer-level measurements to validate designs and guide improvements.
Collaborate with system-level PIC designers to translate system requirements into component specifications.
Work with foundry partners to understand process capabilities and develop robust, manufacturable designs.