Senior Staff Engineer, RF Power Amplifier Design

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Location: Arlington Heights, IL, US

pSemi Corporation is a Murata company driving semiconductor integration. pSemi builds on Peregrine Semiconductor’s 30-year legacy of technology advancements and strong IP portfolio but with a new mission—to enhance Murata’s world-class capabilities with high-performance semiconductors. With a strong foundation in RF integration, pSemi’s product portfolio now spans power management, connected sensors, optical transceivers, antenna tuning and RF frontends. These intelligent and efficient semiconductors enable advanced modules for smartphones, base stations, personal computers, electric vehicles, data centers, IoT devices and healthcare. From headquarters in San Diego and offices around the world, pSemi’s team explores new ways to make electronics for the connected world smaller, thinner, faster and better.

Job Summary

This position is responsible for technical leadership, architecture definition, and end-to-end design direction for advanced RF power amplifier platforms supporting cellular and Wi‑Fi front‑end applications. The individual will serve as a recognized subject matter expert in the development and optimization of RF power amplifiers across multiple frequency bands and semiconductor processes, including SOI and GaAs, and will guide complex technical trade‑off decisions across performance, cost, manufacturability, and time‑to‑market.

The individual will work independently and cross‑functionally to define and advance power amplifier techniques and architectures that enable high‑performance, cost‑optimized APT and ET front‑end solutions. This role will act as a key technical advisor to pSemi and Murata management on RF power amplifier design decisions, capability development, and roadmap tradeoffs.

The successful individual will bring expert‑level knowledge of advanced RF/mmWave power amplifiers for next‑generation cellular and 5G NR applications, deep RFIC circuit design expertise, and the ability to lead resolution of significant and unique technical issues across major development programs requiring broad, multidisciplinary coordination. The individual must have demonstrated experience in developing novel RF PA products, RFIC design, test and mass production product releases.

The individual will join a team of senior technologists and will play a leading role in shaping and executing the long‑term architectural roadmap, building proof‑of‑concept prototypes, and translating advanced technologies into high‑volume products.

This position has responsibility for:

• Lead the development and technical evaluation of novel architectures, circuits, devices, and methods for high‑performance RF power amplifiers and transmit chains using co‑design and co‑simulation of active and passive circuitry.
• Provide technical leadership for advanced RF power amplifier platforms for cellular and Wi‑Fi front‑end applications, including design reviews, architecture trade‑off decisions, and technical risk resolution across multiple programs.
• Drive advanced power amplifier design across multiple process technologies and supply modulation approaches, including envelope tracking, while determining design methodologies and evaluation criteria for complex or non‑standard assignments.
• Lead cross‑functional technical collaboration with engineering teams across pSemi and Murata on PA technologies, aligning design decisions, resolving escalated technical issues, and driving adoption of best practices.
• Partner with key stakeholders and suppliers to influence, refine, and execute the long‑term architectural roadmap for PA platforms, ensuring technical decisions align with product, process, and manufacturing strategy.
• Lead technical execution of PA proof‑of‑concept prototypes and transition successful technologies into high‑volume products, with accountability for design maturity, manufacturability, and performance outcomes.
• Serve as a recognized technical expert in advancing pSemi and Murata RF PA capabilities, directing future efforts regarding tools, technology, performance, cost optimization, and design methodology improvements across the function.
• Mentor and provide technical guidance to junior and peer engineers; review complex designs, elevate team capability, and disseminate advanced design practices across the RF development organization.
• Product Documentation: Document all relevant product and design information to educate others on novel design techniques and provide guidance on product usage.
• Product Characterization: Work with Characterization and Test Engineers to define, conduct and analyze data from product performance characterization.
• Production ATE Development: Work with Test Engineers to define, develop and ramp production ATE solutions.
• Product Support: Provide expert technical leadership with Product, Test, and Manufacturing Engineering to resolve complex field failures, improve yield, drive corrective actions, and establish design learnings that improve future product robustness.

Minimum Qualifications (Experience and Skills)

• Typically requires 12 or more years of RF FEM product development, depending on education level and experience, with demonstrated expert‑level technical capability in the design, development, and commercialization of advanced RF power amplifier products, including:
• More than 5 years of direct experience with GaAs‑based power amplifier product development.
• At least 5 years of advanced development experience directly related to mobile power amplifier and/or transmitter design, including responsibility for resolving novel or non‑standard technical challenges.
• Detailed knowledge and experience with design of envelope tracking (ET) PA for mobile applications.
• Direct hands‑on experience with the design of highly efficient and linear power amplifiers operating between 600 MHz and 20 GHz.
• Deep understanding of technical principles of power amplifier operation and design.
• Experience with transistor level IC design and layout in at least multiple technology nodes including:
• GaAs HBT, CMOS‑SOI, SiGe, GaN
• Understanding of the comparative advantage and tradeoffs between the different processes
• Good WIFI and/or cellular standard system knowledge and key performance metrics.
• Knowledge of IC fabrication and how it impacts circuit performance.
• Good understanding of non‑linear effects in transistors.
• Knowledge of basic analog bias and control circuits and their impact on overall RF system
• Experience with EM (Electromagnetic) modelling of high frequency RFIC’s and PCB’s
• Familiarity with analog & RF IC layout techniques
• Multiple successful IC tape‑outs and demonstrated contribution across the full product life cycle from concept definition through validation, release, and production ramp.
• Experience in design, debug and optimization of RFICs in the lab using standard lab equipment
• Hands on use of RF measurement equipment to validate and correlate performance metrics such as ACP/ACLR, EVM, IP3, NF and gain
• Software tools: Virtuoso, Cadence Spectre, Keysight ADS, EM software, Matlab, JMP
• Strength in documentation clarity and completeness
• Ability to clearly assess and manage risk
• Strong ability to influence cross‑functional technical decisions in a collaborative environment, align diverse stakeholders on complex tradeoffs, and deliver high‑impact outcomes on schedule.
• Recognized subject matter expertise in RF power amplifier design with the ability to determine methods, techniques, and evaluation criteria for highly complex or unique assignments.
• Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering (or equivalent field)

This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to stand; walk; use hands to finger, handle or feel; and reach with hands and arms. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus. This position requires the ability to occasionally lift office products and supplies, up to 20 pounds.

USD 195,563.22 - 254,246.27 per year

pSemi Corporation supports a diverse workforce and is committed to a policy of equal employment opportunity for applicants and employees. pSemi does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion (including religious dress and grooming practices), sex/gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions or breastfeeding), gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, national origin (including language use restrictions and possession of a driver’s license issued under Vehicle Code section 12801.9), ancestry, physical or mental disability, legally‑protected medical condition, military or veteran status (including "protected veterans" under applicable affirmative action laws), marital status, sexual orientation, or any other basis protected by local, state or federal laws applicable to the Company. pSemi also prohibits discrimination based on the perception that an employee or applicant has any of those characteristics, or is associated with a person who has or is perceived as having any of those characteristics. Note: The Peregrine Semiconductor name, Peregrine Semiconductor logoand UltraCMOS are registered trademarks and the pSemi name, pSemi logo, HaRP andDuNE are trademarks of pSemi Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies. pSemi products are protected under one or more of the following U.S. Patents: