Senior Process Engineer

PsiQuantum•Palo Alto, CA

2d•$105,000 - $170,000

About The Position

PsiQuantum's mission is to build the first useful quantum computers—machines capable of delivering the breakthroughs the field has long promised. Since our founding in 2016, our singular focus has been to build and deploy million-qubit, fault-tolerant quantum systems. Quantum computers harness the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems that even the most advanced supercomputers or AI systems will never reach. Their impact will span energy, pharmaceuticals, finance, agriculture, transportation, materials, and other foundational industries. Our architecture and approach is based on silicon photonics. By leveraging the advanced semiconductor manufacturing industry—including partners like GlobalFoundries—we use the same high-volume processes that already produce billions of chips for telecom and consumer electronics. Photonics offers natural advantages for scale: photons don’t feel heat, are immune to electromagnetic interference, and integrate with existing cryogenic cooling and standard fiber-optic infrastructure. In 2024, PsiQuantum announced government-funded projects to support the build-out of our first utility-scale quantum computers in Brisbane, Australia, and Chicago, Illinois. These initiatives reflect a growing recognition that quantum computing will be strategically and economically defining—and that now is the time to scale. PsiQuantum also develops the algorithms and software needed to make these systems commercially valuable. Our application, software, and industry teams work directly with leading Fortune 500 companies—including Lockheed Martin, Mercedes-Benz, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Mitsubishi Chemical—to prepare quantum solutions for real-world impact. Quantum computing is not an extension of classical computing. It represents a fundamental shift—and a path to mastering challenges that cannot be solved any other way. The potential is enormous, and we have a clear path to make it real. Come join us. The Senior Process Engineer will support the development of a new silicon photonic product. They will drive the processes needed to deliver a Photonic Integrated Circuits (PIC) that meets our technology requirements and interface closely with the design and sub-assembly teams for co-optimization. They will drive the yield improvement processes through careful defect inspection and failure analysis with an emphasis on post fab processes and downstream sub-assembly.

Requirements

Minimum 5 years of experience in semiconductor processing.
Prior experience in process development, implementation, and transfer to a HVM.
Experience with dicing, defect inspection, and post fab processing.
Experience with metrology and material analysis.
Proven experience executing cross-department complex projects.
Experience in vendor relationship management.
Experience with test structures for yield limiter determination and improvement.
Strong critical thinking, creative, innovative, analytical, and detail-oriented problem-solving skills.
Proven track record of impactful results.
Self-motivated and resourceful.
Demonstrated ability to juggle multiple priorities and deliver against a schedule.
Demonstrated interest in quantum computing and silicon photonics.
Ability to contribute in a fast-moving start-up environment.

Responsibilities

Develop processes that meet semiconductor performance requirements.
Interface with packaging & assembly teams representing the foundry team on wafer process flows.
Optimize processes to enhance yield and improve stability and/or reliability.
Drive failure analysis of PICs post dicing.
Ability to drive development projects and manage vendor relationships.
Use data analysis skills (Ex: JMP) to develop new process.
Structured risk management and model-based problem-solving skills (FMEA, 8D, 5-why).
Understanding and knowledge of Statistical Process Control (SPC) and/or Design of Experiments (DOE).