Senior Photonics Test Engineer

Volantis Semiconductor, Inc. • San Francisco, CA

12h

About The Position

Volantis Semiconductor is developing optical interconnect technology for AI computing. Its platform combines micro-VCSEL arrays, photonic waveguides, and wafer-scale integration to connect compute and memory with high bandwidth, low latency, and low power.

The Senior Photonics Test Engineer will own characterization, test development, and product validation for photonic devices and integrated optoelectronic assemblies. The role builds measurement capabilities for device and process development, wafer-level screening, product qualification, and transition to scalable manufacturing. It is a hands-on senior individual-contributor position spanning instrumentation, test automation, and data analysis, with responsibility for measurement quality and engineering conclusions drawn from test results.

Requirements

• Demonstrated technical ownership of test development for photonic, optoelectronic, or semiconductor hardware, from measurement requirements through a working, qualified implementation.
• Hands-on experience developing automated test equipment, wafer-probing systems, or custom characterization stations, including hardware integration and test software.
• Experience with optical, electrical, and electro-optical measurements, with depth in PICs, semiconductor lasers, photodetectors, or related devices; ability to build setups, debug hardware, and distinguish device behavior from measurement artifacts.
• Strong measurement fundamentals, including calibration, noise, dynamic range, bandwidth, uncertainty, and repeatability; experience determining whether a test method is suitable for its intended use.
• Proficiency in Python for instrument control, data acquisition, parameter extraction, and analysis; experience with Git or equivalent version control and maintainable measurement software.
• Familiarity with databases and structured test data, including metadata and traceability.
• Practical statistical analysis skills for comparing populations, assessing variation and repeatability, investigating outliers, and interpreting yield.
• Ability to work independently, prioritize experiments, and communicate results, limitations, and root-cause findings clearly to design, process, packaging, and manufacturing teams.
• A degree in Electrical Engineering, Photonics, Optical Engineering, Physics, or a related field, or equivalent relevant industry experience.

Nice To Haves

• Wafer-level optical and RF/electro-optical testing of silicon or silicon nitride PICs; automated alignment, probe cards, wafer mapping, or active and passive device characterization.
• VCSEL or laser-array testing, including RIN, beam profiles, polarization, thermal behavior, and array-level uniformity or crosstalk.
• High-speed measurements using vector network analyzers, RF probes, calibration and de-embedding, eye diagrams, or bit-error-rate testing; correlation of component measurements with optical-link performance.
• NPI, EVT/DVT/PVT, and transfer from R&D to HVM; experience with commercial ATE, parallel or multisite test, station correlation, and test-time reduction.
• Design of experiments, SPC, Gage R&R, yield optimization, reliability qualification, or structured failure analysis and root-cause investigation.
• SQL, JMP, or comparable data-analysis tools; database-backed measurement pipelines, automated reporting, or larger-scale test-data infrastructure.
• Design-for-test implementation, photonic test structures, custom fixtures or test PCBs, or experience connecting device models and fabrication variation to measured performance.

Responsibilities

• Define characterization plans, test coverage, parameter-extraction methods, and acceptance criteria for wafer-, die-, and package-level testing; translate device requirements into practical measurements and screening limits.
• Design, prototype, and qualify automated test equipment and custom optical, electrical, and electro-optical stations, integrating wafer probers, RF/DC instrumentation, optical alignment, motion control, and temperature control.
• Develop measurements for passive photonic integrated circuits (PICs), VCSELs, photodetectors, and assemblies, including optical loss and coupling, laser LIV behavior, spectra, polarization, detector responsivity and dark current, and temperature dependence; collaborate on RF/electro-optical bandwidth measurements.
• Develop Python-based instrument control, measurement sequences, parameter-extraction algorithms, and automated analysis, with maintainable, version-controlled software, logging, error handling, and unattended-testing support.
• Establish calibration, reference-device checks, station matching, and measurement-system analysis, including Gage R&R; use SPC and control charts to monitor drift and data quality.
• Build database-backed test-data workflows with software and data-engineering partners; maintain device, wafer, lot, and configuration traceability; analyze wafer maps, distributions, yield, and process variation to guide engineering decisions.
• Lead measurement-driven root-cause analysis to distinguish device, process, packaging, and test-system issues; correlate wafer-level results with packaged-device and system performance to improve designs and models.
• Collaborate with designers on design for testability, test structures, and optical/electrical access; develop throughput models and reduce test time using parallel measurements, efficient sequencing, and statistically justified sampling while maintaining necessary coverage.
• Support NPI, qualification, reliability testing, and transfer of test methods to manufacturing partners; document procedures, validate transferred stations, and collaborate with photonics, laser, electrical, process, packaging, and manufacturing teams.

What This Job Offers

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