Staff Silicon Photonics Engineer, Receiver (Rx)

Neurophos • Austin, TX

12h • $230,000 - $280,000 • Onsite

About The Position

Neurophos is seeking a Silicon Photonics Engineer to lead the receiver (Rx) photonic integrated circuit (PIC) for its OPU platform, including the T100 optical AI inference chip. The role owns the Rx PIC from photodetector device design through chip-level architecture, covering optical delivery, coupling and routing, and dense photodetector arrays that convert light into high-speed electrical signals for TIAs. The engineer will take designs through tapeout and silicon validation, working with electronic IC, optics, packaging, and test teams to balance bandwidth, sensitivity, noise, density, and power at the system level.

The position is full-time and onsite in Austin, Texas, or Sunnyvale, California, and reports to the Director of Silicon Photonics. Neurophos develops AI inference hardware based on silicon photonics and an active, programmable metasurface, with the stated goal of improving energy efficiency and performance for large-scale AI inference.

Requirements

• PhD in a relevant field, such as Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or Physics.
• At least 3 years of relevant experience in high-speed silicon photonics, focused on photodetectors and receiver PICs.
• Hands-on design experience with Ge-on-Si or equivalent high-speed photodetectors, including trade-offs among responsivity, bandwidth, capacitance, and dark current.
• Proficiency with photonic and device simulation tools, such as Lumerical/Ansys, COMSOL, Synopsys TCAD, or equivalent, and circuit-level modeling of photodetectors.
• Experience laying out and taping out designs in a silicon photonics foundry PDK using tools such as KLayout, gdsfactory, Cadence Virtuoso, or equivalent.
• Working knowledge of optical receiver fundamentals, including TIA interfacing, noise, sensitivity, and PAM4 signal integrity.

Nice To Haves

• At least 5 years of experience developing high-speed silicon photonics receivers or photodetectors.
• Experience taking devices through the full design-to-tapeout-to-fabrication-to-test cycle.
• Experience designing large or dense photodetector arrays, or free-space and surface-normal optical coupling to photonic chips.
• Experience co-designing photodetectors with CMOS/SiGe TIAs in monolithic, flip-chip, or 3D-integrated receivers.
• Experience with advanced detector platforms, such as avalanche photodiodes or III-V/Si heterogeneous detectors, or a track record of publications or patents in photodetectors and receivers.

Responsibilities

• Define Rx PIC architecture, including optical input coupling, routing, demultiplexing where needed, and dense photodetector-array layout, within system-level link and power budgets.
• Design and optimize high-speed photodetectors, such as Ge-on-Si PIN and avalanche devices, for responsivity, dark current, capacitance, bandwidth, linearity, and saturation.
• Model photodetector devices and receivers using optical, electrical, and RF simulation, including equivalent-circuit models for co-design with the TIA.
• Collaborate with the electronic IC team on the photodetector–TIA interface, including pad and interconnect parasitics, bias, input-referred noise, and sensitivity, and consider flip-chip, 3D, and co-packaged integration.
• Analyze array-level optical and electrical crosstalk, uniformity, thermal behavior, and yield; define test structures and design-for-test features to measure them.
• Lead layout, verification, and tapeout of Rx PIC test vehicles and product blocks in foundry silicon photonics PDKs.
• Support die- and wafer-level characterization with the test team, including responsivity, dark current, O/E bandwidth, sensitivity, and BER; use results to calibrate models and improve subsequent designs.
• Evaluate new detector materials, structures, and coupling approaches that could improve receiver performance or density.

Benefits

• 100% coverage of base health plan premiums for the employee and dependents, plus HSA contributions.
• Unlimited PTO.
• 401(k) matching.
• Stock option opportunities.
• Voluntary dental, vision, life, hospital, critical illness, and accident insurance.
• Personalized benefits plans, with the option to take cash back for plans not selected.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree