Lead IC – Driver Development & High-Speed Transceiver Test Automation

Location: Santa Clara / Fremont, CA

Work Setting: 100% onsite

Travel: Approximately 10%, primarily to contract manufacturers, internal development sites, and occasional supplier locations

Relocation: Available on a case-by-case basis

Position Summary

A global leader in optical communications technology is seeking a Lead Engineer – Driver Development & High-Speed Transceiver Test Automation to provide technical leadership for embedded driver development and automated test platforms supporting next-generation 800G, 1.6T, and beyond optical transceivers.

This is a senior individual contributor opportunity for an engineer who wants significant technical ownership without moving into people management. The role combines hands-on C/C++ development, embedded driver architecture, high-speed test automation, hardware/software integration, and manufacturing deployment.

Working across Hardware, Firmware, DSP, Systems, Product, and Manufacturing Engineering, this engineer will help define the software and test architecture behind next-generation optical technologies supporting AI infrastructure and high-speed data center networking.

What You'll Do

• Architect and develop embedded drivers and automated test platforms for next-generation optical transceivers

• Build hands-on C/C++ software supporting 800G, 1.6T, and future high-speed optical products

• Develop scalable test automation and instrument communication using SCPI, GPIB, I²C, UART, and related interfaces

• Integrate and debug hardware/software systems using schematics, oscilloscopes, DCA equipment, BER testing, and other high-speed instrumentation

• Provide technical leadership and mentorship across an 8–15 person multidisciplinary engineering team

• Partner with Hardware, Firmware, DSP, Systems, Product, Manufacturing, Program Management, and FAE teams

• Lead software and test solutions from development through NPI and production deployment

• Drive improvements in manufacturing yield, UPH, reliability, test capability, and overall software architecture

What You Bring

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related discipline

• 10+ years of embedded software, driver development, or high-speed optical test development experience strongly preferred

• Strong hands-on C/C++ development expertise

• Experience with embedded driver development, electrical schematics, and hardware/software debugging

• Strong background in automated test development and production deployment

• Experience with high-speed optical transceivers and PAM4 technology

• Hands-on experience with oscilloscopes, DCA, BER testing, and high-speed test instrumentation

• Experience communicating with instrumentation through SCPI, GPIB, I²C, UART, or similar interfaces

• Proven ability to provide cross-functional technical leadership while remaining hands-on with development

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field

• Experience with 1.6T optical transceivers and next-generation data center technologies

• Background in Co-Packaged Optics (CPO), Optical Compute Interconnect (OCI), or Silicon Photonics

• Experience within optical networking, high-speed semiconductors, telecom, datacom, or test instrumentation

• Experience defining test architecture for high-volume manufacturing environments

Why This Opportunity

• Help build the next generation of 1.6T and beyond optical manufacturing technology

• Significant technical ownership without having to move into people management

• Influence end-to-end software and automated test architecture

• Work across optics, embedded software, firmware, DSP, automation, and manufacturing

• Greenfield development opportunities with direct impact on future products

• Work on technologies supporting AI infrastructure and next-generation data center networking

• Clear technical career path into Principal and Senior Principal Engineer opportunities