PIC Test & Characterization Engineer

Pic Test & Characterization EngineerEngineering Berkeley, CA Full-timeConventional chips are hitting a wall, and as AI inference demand grows, power consumption is becoming the single biggest constraint on deployment at scale. Opticore is developing a photonic computing system that accelerates artificial intelligence workloads with exceptional speed and energy efficiency.ResponsibilitiesDevelop and execute test and characterization plans for photonic integrated circuits and individual photonic devicesPerform optical and electrical measurements of fabricated PICs and componentsCharacterize devices including waveguides, grating couplers, modulators, photodetectors, resonators, switches, and other active/passive photonic componentsBuild and improve automated test setups for wafer-level and packaged-device characterizationDevelop Python-based measurement, data acquisition, analysis, and visualization workflowsPerform fiber-to-chip coupling, optical alignment, probing, and other hands-on photonic measurementsAnalyze device performance including optical loss, coupling efficiency, bandwidth, extinction ratio, responsivity, insertion loss, and related parametersWork closely with PIC designers to compare measured performance against simulations and design targetsSupport debugging, root-cause analysis, and design iterations based on experimental resultsCollaborate with fabrication, packaging, electrical, and systems teams to improve device and test performanceHelp establish repeatable characterization methodologies and test infrastructure as the technology moves toward higher-volume experimentation and productionRequired QualificationsExperience testing and characterizing photonic integrated circuits or integrated optical devicesStrong understanding of silicon photonics, silicon nitride photonics, or related integrated photonics platformsHands-on experience with optical test equipment such as tunable lasers, optical power meters, OSA, VNAs, photodetectors, and optical/electrical probesExperience with fiber-to-chip coupling, optical alignment, wafer probing, or packaged photonic devicesStrong Python skills for test automation, data acquisition, analysis, and visualizationExperience interpreting experimental data and connecting measured device behavior to underlying photonic designs and physicsFamiliarity with PIC fabrication, layouts, tapeouts, PDKs, or device simulation is highly desirableAbility to work hands-on in a laboratory environment and troubleshoot complex optical/electrical test setupsPreferred QualificationsExperience with thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) or lithium-niobate photonicsExperience with silicon nitride (SiN) PICsExperience with wafer-level automated testing or high-throughput photonic characterizationExperience characterizing high-speed electro-optic devicesExperience with Lumerical, COMSOL, or other photonic simulation toolsExperience designing PIC test structures or contributing to PIC layoutsExperience taking devices from design and fabrication through characterization and iterationWe're reviewing applications on a rolling basis and will reach out to shortlisted candidates.