Senior Staff Process Development Engineer

In the Advanced Technology Services (ATS) group at SkyWater, our team works hand in hand with customers to develop a wide range of exciting new, novel, and fully customized technologies - including superconducting ICs, quantum computing devices, carbon nanotube devices, MEMs, Bio sensors, DNA sequencing devices, Si photonics, and III-V devices.

We are seeking a Senior Staff Process Development Engineer to join our team, working on the fabrication and integration of quantum devices in a semiconductor foundry environment.

Responsibilities:

• Develop and optimize fabrication process flows for wafer level manufacturing of low-loss photonic waveguides, ensuring seamless execution
• Support integration of components relevant to quantum applications
• Collaborate with process integration teams to troubleshoot yield, optical loss, and reliability issues across the fab flow
• Develop test and characterization methodologies for waveguide loss, modulator bandwidth, coupling efficiency, and device-level quantum metrics
• Interface with cross-functional teams (customer, design, process, packaging, test) to ensure manufacturability of quantum photonic devices
• Document process recipes, integration flows, and failure analysis for internal knowledge transfer and process control
• Collaborate with CAD engineers to validate incoming layout files, constructing frames with essential metrology boxes and electrical test structures.
• Implement data collection schemes and collaborate with process and tool experts to formulate effective process recipes.
• Design and conduct experiments to validate and optimize process recipes.
• Liaise with the failure analysis lab to submit samples for cross-sectioning, contributing to continuous improvement.
• Monitor customer material and proactively address processing issues, ensuring a smooth workflow.
• Conduct regular meetings with customers, providing updates on project progress as materials move through the production line.
• Deliver process reviews with the goal of transitioning the device to full-scale production.

Required Qualifications:

• BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Eng, Materials Science, Chemical Eng, Physics, Optical Engineering or related discipline
• Experience with cleanroom fabrication tools (lithography, etch, deposition, CMP, metrology)
• BS and 7 years or MS and 5 years or PhD and 2-3 years of engineering experience in a semiconductor fab or lab environment.
• Basic knowledge of semiconductor fabrication and equipment.
• Strong organizational skills and work ethic.
• Exceptional oral and written communication skills.
• Ability to thrive in a large cross-functional program environment.

Preferred Qualifications:

• PhD in a related field.
• Research experience in materials used in semiconductor manufacturing.
• Exposure to various aspects of semiconductor manufacturing processes.
• Experience with foundry-scale (200mm/300mm) photonic process design kits (PDKs)
• Hands-on experience with photonic integrated circuit (PIC) fabrication in a cleanroom/fab environment
• Demonstrated experience with low-loss waveguide fabrication (etch processes, cladding deposition, propagation loss reduction techniques)
• Strong understanding of optical characterization techniques (loss measurement, spectral characterization)
• Familiarity with high-speed modulator design, fabrication, or characterization (RF/electro-optic co-design a plus)
• Working knowledge of quantum photonics principles as applied to at least one of: quantum networking, quantum sensing, or quantum computing
• Familiarity with cryogenic packaging or testing quantum hardware
• Background in RF/microwave engineering for modulator driver integration
• Publication record or patents in integrated photonics, quantum optics, or related fields
• Prior work in a semiconductor fab or foundry environment