Senior PIC Design Engineer

Job Description

Job Title: Senior PIC Design Engineer. Location: British Columbia, Canada (Hybrid)

Responsibilities:

• Design and optimize large scale photonic integrated circuits for advanced quantum technologies at both system and device levels.
• Develop and refine complex PIC architectures including both active and passive components.
• Create and maintain software tools and scripts to support design, simulation, and analysis goals.
• Work closely with semiconductor foundries and manufacturing partners to support fabrication and production.
• Conduct trade studies and analysis of alternatives to evaluate design approaches and technical trade offs;
• Propose, design, and analyze experiments to validate simulation models and improve design performance.
• Present technical findings through clear written documentation and verbal presentations to cross functional teams.
• Translate technical analysis into practical recommendations that guide future technology development.
• Address integration challenges between photonic chips and other hardware systems;
• Develop robust simulation workflows and documentation to support collaboration among design engineers.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams including photonic designers, nanofabrication engineers, test engineers, and physicists.
• Train and mentor engineers on design frameworks, best practices, and simulation workflows.
• Contribute to the company’s intellectual property portfolio through new ideas and innovations.

Qualifications:

• Master’s or PhD degree in electrical engineering, applied physics, or a related discipline.
• At least 5 years of industrial experience working with silicon photonics technologies.
• Strong expertise in designing and optimizing silicon photonic integrated circuits and photonic devices;
• Experience with photonic layout design tools such as KLayout, Luceda, Cadence, Mentor Graphics, or similar platforms.
• Proficiency in programming languages such as Python and MATLAB for modeling and automation tasks.
• Experience using electromagnetic simulation tools including Lumerical (FDTD, MODE, INTERCONNECT) or Tidy3D.
• Solid understanding of photonics, electronics, and electromagnetic compatibility principles;
• Familiarity with optical laboratory tools such as parameter analyzers, optical spectrum analyzers, and laser sources.
• Strong communication, collaboration, and documentation skills.
• Ability to work independently while contributing effectively to a multidisciplinary engineering team.

Preferred:

• More than 7 years of experience with silicon photonics in industry.
• Experience designing high performance optical switches and modulators with GHz level operation, low optical loss, and low power consumption.
• Knowledge of inverse design optimization techniques such as adjoint methods, particle swarm optimization, genetic algorithms, and gradient based optimization.
• Experience designing high performance single photon detectors;
• Expertise in photonic circuit design using silicon nitride or hybrid material platforms.
• Experience with high frequency chip design such as RFIC or MMIC and signal modeling using tools like HFSS.
• Experience with thermal and mechanical device modeling using tools such as COMSOL;
• Experience with semiconductor device modeling tools such as Sentaurus or Silvaco TCAD.
• Knowledge of PIC packaging, fabrication processes, and hardware testing.
• Understanding of quantum optics and cryogenic photonic integrated circuits.

Benefits and Compensation:

• Opportunity to work with leading innovators in quantum computing and advanced photonics technologies.
• Dynamic and collaborative environment focused on solving complex engineering challenges.
• Inclusive culture that values teamwork, diversity, and collaboration;
• Regular company social events and team activities.
• Competitive compensation package including base salary, stock options, and relocation assistance for international candidates.
• Comprehensive benefits including extended health coverage, dental care, life insurance, long term disability coverage, employee assistance programs, parental leave top ups, and flexible spending accounts;
• Annual base salary range for this role is $117,000 to $161,000 CAD depending on qualifications, experience, location, and business needs.
• Eligibility for additional compensation through equity and benefits programs.

Information and Instructions:

• Applicants must submit a resume and cover letter in a single file explaining why they are a strong fit for the team and what strengths they bring.
• Candidates who meet most but not all requirements are still encouraged to apply.
• AI tools may assist in reviewing applications, but final hiring decisions are made by human reviewers;
• The company is committed to maintaining a workplace culture focused on equity, diversity, and inclusion and welcomes candidates from diverse backgrounds.
• Applicants who require accommodations during the hiring process are encouraged to inform the hiring team.