Technical Staff Engineer – Applications

Microchip Technology Inc.•Austin, TX

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Microchip’s Data Center Solutions (DCS) business unit delivers industry‑leading performance, reliability, and security across a broad range of technologies, including PCIe switches, retimer, smart storage controllers, RAID controllers, SAS/SATA I/O controllers, SAS expanders, and NVMe controllers. Microchip Technology Inc. has a Technical Staff Engineer-Applications opening based in Austin, TX. This role is within Microchip’s rapidly growing DCS organization, which supports a diverse and expanding portfolio of products widely adopted by AI leading server and storage OEMs as well as hyperscale data center customers. DCS solutions are deployed across applications ranging from large‑scale data storage to artificial intelligence and machine learning, helping to shape the next generation of digital infrastructure. Our portfolio spans SAS, PCIe, NVMe, and CXL technologies and includes flash controllers, high‑performance switches, RAID controllers, and memory controllers that connect, manage, and secure the world’s data. The Applications Engineering team works closely with product development, product validation, marketing, and sales teams to enable customers to successfully bring their solutions to market. Team members engage directly with customer engineering organizations to support design wins, product ramps, and system production. This role offers the opportunity to work with leading‑edge technologies in data center, AI/ML, and storage applications within a dynamic environment, while making meaningful contributions to the growth and success of the business.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or Computer Engineering, with 12.5+ years of relevant industry experience.
Ability to collaborate effectively with cross‑functional teams across multiple geographic locations to drive engineering excellence and successful project outcomes.
Strong software and firmware development and debugging skills, with an emphasis on multi‑threaded architectures.
Proficiency in C and C++ programming.
Experience developing test scripts using Perl, Bash, or Python.
Prior work with UNIX and Windows (Wintel) drivers, as well as firmware development using lightweight embedded operating systems such as ThreadX, VxWorks, eCos, or similar platforms.
Customer‑facing experience focused on technical support, issue analysis, and root‑cause debugging.
Hands‑on experience with bench‑top equipment, including protocol analyzers, exercisers, logic analyzers, and other storage‑related test tools.
Solid understanding of system‑level firmware and hardware interactions, with strong analytical and problem‑solving capabilities.
Working knowledge of PCIe.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience in the storage industry, with familiarity working collaboratively with marketing and sales teams.
Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to effectively engage and collaborate across cross‑functional teams.
Hands‑on experience with RISC‑based embedded processors, preferably MIPS.
Strong debugging capabilities, including experience with kernel‑level debugging tools (e.g., WinDbg), JTAG, and serial interfaces.
Comprehensive understanding of computer system design, including server and storage architectures, microprocessors, I/O interfaces, electronics hardware development, and basic programming in Python and C.
Proficiency in system and hardware debugging using laboratory tools such as multimeters, oscilloscopes, and Linux‑based diagnostic utilities.

Responsibilities

Lead customer storage platform enablement using Microchip Switchtec® PCI Express® switch products, driving robust, system‑level solutions.
Collaborate with AI hyperscale and global storage customers to define requirements, manage deliverables, and support platforms from initial board bring‑up through production release.
Provide advanced technical support by managing platform enablement issues and developing high‑quality product collateral, including hardware guides, reference design packages, firmware updates, and software for PCIe switch products used in data center and computing/storage solutions.
Deliver product training and technical presentations to internal field engineers and customer engineering teams, while mentoring and supporting the development of junior engineers.
Work both independently and as part of cross‑functional teams to resolve complex engineering challenges.
Travel to customer sites, as required, to debug systems and support PCIe switch product deployments.
Lead technical discussions and customer engagements to optimize system designs and platform implementations.
Ensure seamless product integration and effective lifecycle management through close collaboration with customers and internal stakeholders.
Continuously expand technical expertise in next‑generation PCI Express protocols, storage architectures, and Switchtec products through internal and external technical resources.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams (hardware, software, QA, product management) to define requirements and deliverables.
Troubleshoot, debug, and resolve firmware and system-level issues using advanced tools and methodologies.