Emulation Build Engineer

Job Title: Emulation Build Engineer

Location: Sunnyvale CA (Onsite)

Job Description:

Summary

We are seeking an Emulation Build Engineer to own the end-to-end process of building, compiling, and validating RTL design models targeting hardware emulation and prototyping platforms - specifically Cadence Palladium, Cadence Protium, and/or Synopsys ZeBu. You will be the critical bridge between RTL design teams and validation/software teams, ensuring that high-quality, synthesizable emulation models are delivered on schedule to enable early firmware development, hardware-software co-verification, and system-level validation.

Key Responsibilities

Emulation Model Build & Compilation

• Build, compile, and optimize RTL-to-gate/behavioral models targeting Palladium, Protium, and/or ZeBu emulation platforms
• Own the emulation build flow from RTL ingestion through synthesis, partitioning, mapping, place-and-route, and bitstream/image generation
• Resolve synthesis and compilation errors including unresolved modules, black-box instantiation, clock/reset inference, memory mapping, and multi-driver conflicts
• Implement and maintain RTL waivers, workarounds, and design abstraction (memory wrappers, analog stubs, IP replacements) to achieve clean compilations
• Optimize build configurations for compile time, resource utilization, emulation speed (MHz), and capacity across target platforms
• Manage incremental and hierarchical build strategies to reduce turnaround time for design iterations
• Support multi-domain and multi-clock designs with proper clock modeling and domain crossing handling

Model Validation & Quality

• Validate emulation models through sanity tests, boot tests, and golden-reference comparisons against RTL simulation
• Ensure functional equivalence between RTL simulation and emulation by running correlation test suites
• Debug and resolve model mismatches (simulation vs. emulation) due to synthesis artifacts, X-state handling, timing differences, or initialization issues
• Validate memory models, I/O interfaces, and transactor/synthesizable BFM integration
• Perform coverage analysis on emulation models and track model quality metrics
• Maintain a regression suite for build-level validation (smoke tests, connectivity checks)

Infrastructure & Automation

• Develop and maintain automated build pipelines (CI/CD) for nightly/weekly emulation model builds
• Create scripts and tools for build monitoring, error triage, capacity tracking, and build status reporting
• Maintain version-controlled build configurations, design collateral, and release notes
• Manage compute farm resources (LSF/SGE/Slurm) and optimize job scheduling for emulation builds
• Track and manage platform licenses and capacity allocation across projects
• Develop dashboards and metrics for build health, turnaround time, and platform utilization

Collaboration & Support

• Partner with RTL design teams on design readiness, coding guidelines, and synthesizability best practices for emulation
• Work with verification/validation teams to integrate transactors, probes, and debug infrastructure into emulation models
• Collaborate with firmware/software teams to deliver validated models for early SW development and hardware-software co-validation
• Coordinate with EDA vendor support (Cadence, Synopsys) for tool issues, feature requests, and platform upgrades
• Support silicon bring-up teams with emulation-correlated debug and pre-silicon regression data
• Participate in project planning to communicate build schedules, risks, and dependencies

Required Qualifications

• Education: B.S./M.S. in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field
• Experience: 3-8+ years in emulation model build, FPGA prototyping, or related hardware compilation roles
• Hands-on experience with one or more emulation/prototyping platforms:

Platform Key Skills Cadence Palladium xeCompiler, xeDesignOptimizer, multi-domain clocking, ICE/SCE modes, speed optimization Cadence Protium FPGA-based prototyping, partitioning, multi-FPGA mapping, pin multiplexing, timing closure Synopsys ZeBu zFAST/zTOP compile, design partitioning, ZCUI, transactor integration, ZeBu Server

• Strong understanding of RTL design constructs and synthesizability rules (Verilog/SystemVerilog)
• Experience with logic synthesis concepts (technology mapping, optimization, timing constraints)
• Proficiency in scripting and automation: Python, Perl, Tcl, Bash, Makefiles
• Knowledge of memory modeling (SRAM, ROM, FIFO wrappers) and abstraction for emulation
• Familiarity with clock modeling strategies (clock generators, clock muxes, PLLs) in emulation
• Understanding of design hierarchy, IP integration, and SoC-level build complexity
• Experience with version control (Git, Perforce) and build management systems

Diverse Lynx LLC is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive due consideration for employment without any discrimination. All applicants will be evaluated solely on the basis of their ability, competence and their proven capability to perform the functions outlined in the corresponding role. We promote and support a diverse workforce across all levels in the company.