Senior Principal Firmware Engineer

MKS Instruments•Andover Shattuck, MA

About The Position

As a Senior Principal Firmware Engineer on MKS’s Valves Engineering team, you will play a critical technical leadership role within a highly collaborative, cross-functional environment. You will design and develop embedded firmware that powers advanced throttle valve products used in semiconductor manufacturing and other high-performance vacuum applications.

Requirements

BS, MS or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
12+ years of experience in embedded systems and firmware development, including control algorithms.
Demonstrated technical leadership with strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
Strong proficiency in C and C++ programming for real-time embedded systems.
Expertise in debugging and system bring-up, using tools such as emulators, oscilloscopes, and communication bus analyzers.
Experience with version control systems and structured software release processes

Nice To Haves

Experience with industrial fieldbus protocols such as EtherCAT, DeviceNet, or similar.
Experience with motion control systems, including stepper motors and BLDC motors.
Strong understanding of feedback control theory, including PID control and tuning.
Experience with SPI, I2C, UART and other communication protocols.

Responsibilities

Leading the architecture, design, implementation, verification and validation of embedded firmware for complex control systems.
Collaborating closely with cross-functional team to understand customer requirements and deliver innovative solutions that enhance product performance and customer success.
Establishing and driving firmware development best practices, including coding standards, design reviews, and automated test frameworks.
Providing technical leadership, mentorship and guidance to firmware engineers across the organization.
Driving continuous improvement in firmware quality, reliability, and development efficiency.