Senior Design Engineer – Silicon Photonics

Cisco

Silicon Photonics Senior Design Engineer responsible for designing and developing integrated optical devices for Cisco's optical transceiver products. Collaborating with a global team to enable next-generation technology.

Posted 4/30/2026full-timeCarlsbad • California, Pennsylvania • 🇺🇸 United StatesSenior💰 $134,300 - $195,400 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Responsible for the design, development and qualification of integrated optical devices used in Cisco silicon photonics transceivers
Work within a team of silicon photonics designers on integrated optical devices to enable the next generation of Cisco optical transceiver products
Develop modulators and photodetector through device design, layout of test and characterization structures, testing (including high speed) and reliability qualification to make them ready for use in products
Interact with the foundry and its engineers to optimize the manufacturing process and select process parameters
Interface with product team IC designers to deliver device models and optimize the performance parameters of the optoelectronic devices to match with drivers and TIAs

Requirements

What you’ll need

Bachelor’s degree in Optics, Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a related field
7+ years of experience in an engineering role
Experience designing passive and active silicon photonics components (e.g. grating couplers, photodetectors, modulators, filters) or subsystems that use them
Experience using software modeling tools such as Ansys/Lumerical, Silvaco, or Photon Design
Experience using CAD layout tools such as Cadence Virtuoso, kLayout, etc.
Master’s degree in Optics, Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a related field and 5+ years of experience in an engineering role or PhD in Optics, Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a related field and 2+ years of experience
Experience with optical test equipment (e.g. tunable lasers, detectors, OSA, VNA) and microwave measurement techniques
Experience with statistical analysis tools (e.g. JMP)
Experience with the design of integrated electronic circuits that interface with active silicon photonics components (e.g., TIAs, modulator drivers)

Benefits

Comp & perks

medical, dental and vision insurance
401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
paid parental leave
short and long-term disability coverage
basic life insurance
10 paid holidays per full calendar year
1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
1 paid day off for employee’s birthday
paid year-end holiday shutdown
4 paid days off for personal wellness
16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year for non-exempt employees
flexible vacation time off program for exempt employees
80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter
up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward from one calendar year to the next
Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members
Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

designdevelopmentqualificationmodulatorsphotodetectorsdevice designtestingreliability qualificationoptical componentsintegrated electronic circuits

Certifications

Bachelor’s degreeMaster’s degreePhD