Principal Mechanical Engineer

Introduction to the Job

In this role, you will serve as a principal technical leader for optomechanical architecture and design across new product development and sustaining engineering initiatives. You will collaborate closely with optical, mechanical, systems, controls, thermal, manufacturing, service, quality, and supplier teams to deliver stable, precise, reliable, and manufacturable optomechanical solutions throughout the product lifecycle. Based in San Diego, California, you will provide technical leadership for Cymer’s Light Conditioning Function team. You will guide complex module development, introduce new technologies, sustain and improve released products, and influence engineering roadmaps five to seven years ahead. You will help define the future of precision engineering while ensuring existing products remain reliable, manufacturable, serviceable, and responsive to customer needs.

Role and Responsibilities

• Lead the specification, architecture, design, integration, and validation of complex optomechanical modules and subsystems for new and existing product platforms.
• Develop technology roadmaps and guide research, feasibility studies, sustaining strategies, and long-term engineering decisions.
• Direct multidisciplinary engineering teams through concept development, detailed design, testing, production introduction, release, and ongoing product support.
• Design mechanical and optomechanical parts, assemblies, fixtures, and alignment solutions using sound engineering principles.
• Perform tolerance analysis, finite element analysis, and system-level troubleshooting to resolve performance, reliability, manufacturing, and field challenges.
• Lead root cause investigations and corrective actions for production, field, and customer-reported issues.
• Develop and implement design improvements that enhance product performance, reliability, manufacturability, serviceability, safety, and cost effectiveness.
• Support engineering change requests, component obsolescence management, configuration control, and lifecycle planning for released products.
• Use system performance data, manufacturing feedback, service insights, and customer needs to identify improvement opportunities and mitigate technical risk.
• Partner with suppliers, manufacturing, service, quality, and supply chain teams to support prototypes, fabrication, testing, production continuity, and sustained product performance.
• Provide technical leadership for new technology introductions, product upgrades, retrofit solutions, and improvements to existing products and platforms.
• Mentor engineers, share technical knowledge, and challenge conventional approaches to drive innovation and continuous improvement.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or a related engineering discipline.
• 10–15 years of relevant engineering experience, including advanced mechanical design, system integration, technical leadership, and product lifecycle responsibilities.
• A master’s degree or doctoral degree in mechanical engineering or a related field is preferred.
• Experience designing machined, sheet metal, molded, additive-manufactured, and flexure-based components and assemblies.
• Proficiency with three-dimensional computer-aided design software and detailed engineering drawings.
• Experience with PTC Creo is preferred.
• Experience with geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T), tolerance analysis, documentation control systems, and engineering change processes.
• Experience with finite element analysis involving structural, thermal, vibration, or fluid dynamics applications.
• Experience supporting released products through troubleshooting, root cause analysis, corrective action, design changes, reliability improvements, or obsolescence management.
• Experience working directly with suppliers, fabricators, manufacturing, quality, service, and supply chain teams throughout the product lifecycle.
• Familiarity with industrial laser systems, optomechanical systems, or semiconductor manufacturing equipment is preferred.

Skills

Working at the cutting edge of tech, you’ll always have new challenges and new problems to solve, and working together is the only way to do that. You won’t work in a silo. Instead, you’ll be part of a creative, dynamic work environment where you’ll collaborate with supportive colleagues. There is always space for creative and unique points of view. You’ll have the flexibility and trust to choose how best to tackle tasks and solve problems. To thrive in this job, you’ll need the following skills:

• Apply deep mechanical and optomechanical expertise to complex, system-level engineering challenges across new development and sustaining work.
• Evaluate problems from multiple perspectives and develop innovative, practical solutions that balance immediate needs with long-term product health.
• Communicate technical recommendations clearly to engineers, leaders, suppliers, manufacturing teams, service partners, and external organizations.
• Collaborate effectively across mechanical, optical, systems, controls, manufacturing, quality, service, and supply chain disciplines.
• Balance technical performance, cost, manufacturability, reliability, serviceability, lifecycle risk, and safety requirements when making design decisions.
• Lead through influence and build alignment across teams with diverse priorities and objectives.
• Demonstrate integrity and foster a safe, inclusive, and trusting work environment.
• Take ownership of critical technical decisions while remaining open to feedback, field learning, and alternative viewpoints.
• As a Principal Mechanical Engineer, you will embody ASML’s values by challenging technical limits, collaborating across disciplines, and caring for the success and well-being of those around you.
• This opportunity allows you to influence future technologies, mentor fellow engineers, and strengthen the performance and longevity of existing semiconductor manufacturing solutions.

Compensation & Benefits

The current base annual salary range for this role is currently: $160,400-220,550 Pay scales are determined by role, level, location and alignment with market data. Individual pay is determined through interviews and an assessment of several factors that that are unique to each candidate, including but not limited to job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and pay relative to other team members.

• The Company offers employees and their families, medical, dental, vision, and basic life insurance.
• Employees are able to participate in the Company’s 401k plan.
• Employees will also receive eight (8) hours of vacation leave every month and (13) paid holidays throughout the calendar year.

This position requires access to controlled technology, as defined in the United States Export Administration Regulations (15C.F.R. §730, etseq.). Qualified candidates must be legally authorized to access such controlled technology prior to beginning work. Business demands may require ASML to proceed with candidates who are immediately eligible to access controlled technology.

Inclusion and diversity

ASML is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and respects the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce.

It is the policy of the company to recruit, hire, train and promote persons in all job titles without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. We recognize that inclusion and diversity is a driving force in the success of our company.

Request an Accommodation

ASML provides reasonable accommodations to applicants for ASML employment and ASML employees with disabilities. An accommodation is a change in work rules, facilities, or conditions which enable an individual with a disability to apply for a job, perform the essential functions of a job, and/or enjoy equal access to the benefits and privileges of employment.

ASML is a leading supplier of lithography equipment, used by the world’s top chipmakers to print microchips that are increasingly powerful, fast and energy efficient. Working at ASML is inspiring, no matter what field you’re in. That’s because we push the boundaries of technology: if it’s moving the world forward, chances are, we’re behind it. In fact, we’re probably a part of the electronic device you’re using right now. We’re a global team of more than 32,000 people from 122 different nationalities and counting. Headquartered in Europe’s top tech hub, the Brainport Eindhoven region in the Netherlands, our operations are spread across Europe, Asia and the US.

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