Lightmatter is leading the revolution in AI data center infrastructure, enabling the next giant leaps in human progress. The company invented the world’s first 3D-stacked photonics engine, Passage™, capable of connecting thousands to millions of processors at the speed of light in extreme-scale data centers for the most advanced AI and HPC workloads.
Lightmatter raised $400 million in its Series D round, reaching a valuation of $4.4 billion. We will continue to accelerate the development of data center photonics and grow every department at Lightmatter!
If you're passionate about tackling complex challenges, making an impact, and being an expert in your craft, join our team of brilliant scientists, engineers, and accomplished industry leaders.
Lightmatter is (re)inventing the future of computing with light!
We are looking for a Senior Electrical Design Engineer to contribute to the development of the next generation of silicon photonics based artificial intelligence accelerators and interconnect products.
In this role, you will lead board and system solutions that leverage Lightmatter’s technology to enable advanced machine learning, artificial intelligence, and large-scale interconnect platforms.
You will lead and own HW systems efforts, collaborate closely with teams across hardware and software, including mechanical, packaging, and IC engineering, to design, integrate, troubleshoot and release system-level products at the leading edge of innovation.
Responsibilities- Collaborate with the system architect and technical leads to define system-level hardware requirements and spec
- Electrical design of power, memory, and interconnect circuits, working in both the analog and digital domains
- Identify electrical and optical components to fit the application based on specifications provided by the IC and photonics engineering teams
- Starting from fundamental concepts and system considerations you will develop conceptual designs, physical modeling, and simulations of chip-modules and systems
- Oversee and review PCB layout designs, providing complete and detailed electrical constraint rules
- Ensure the board and system is manufacturable to the latest technologies with high yield and robustness
- Qualification of chip and system electrical properties
- Perform laboratory validation of boards and systems
- Lead integration with mechanical, software, IC, and other related teams
- Support contract manufacturing during prototype and production phase to resolve any issues
- Work with component vendors and other supply partners
- Research new components, processes, and technologies to meet product goals
- Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering
- 8+ years of related experience in system-level electrical design, having successfully taken several products from concept to production.
- Proficient in schematic design using Cadence, Mentor, or Altium tool set (Altium preferred)
- In depth knowledge on VRMs, high speed SERDES, CPUs and various interfaces/protocols such as PCIe, Ethernet, QSPI, I3C, I2C, etc
- 5+ years of experience in lab experimentation, non-intrusive circuit debugging, and leading cross-functional integration teams
- Experience in working with thermal solutions for integrated circuits and their board level systems
- Familiar with Product Lifecycle Management tools, e.g. Oracle Agile, Arena, or Omnify PLM with an understanding of BOM and ECO management
- Experience designing electrical systems for networking or similar industries
- Knowledge of integrated circuit layout, and designing a carrier PCBA for it
- Knowledge of common manufacturing and design processes
- Familiarity with Systems Engineering principles
- Familiar with 3D Mechanical CAD tools, e.g. Solidworks or AutoCAD
This role is open to two levels Staff and Sr Staff. Leveling placement and salary range is dependent on education, years of experience, and interview performance.
We offer competitive compensation. The base salary range for this role determined based on location, experience, educational background, and market data.
- Comprehensive Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)
- Retirement Savings Matching Program
- Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D)
- Generous Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)
- Paid Family Leave
- Short Term & Long Term Disability
- Training & Development
- Commuter Benefits
- Flexible, hybrid workplace model
- Equity grants (applicable to full-time employees)
Benefits eligibility may vary depending on your employment status and location. Lightmatter recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.
Export Control
Candidates should have capacity to comply with the federally mandated requirements of U.S. export control laws.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering
- 8+ years of related experience in system-level electrical design
- Proficient in schematic design using Cadence, Mentor, or Altium tool set
- In depth knowledge on VRMs, high speed SERDES, CPUs, and various interfaces/protocols
- 5+ years of experience in lab experimentation and circuit debugging
- Experience with thermal solutions for integrated circuits
- Familiar with Product Lifecycle Management tools
Lightmatter Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Lightmatter and has not been reviewed or approved by Lightmatter.
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Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay is considered competitive for specialized photonics and AI‑hardware roles, with posted ranges and third‑party totals aligning to strong market levels. Compensation for niche roles is framed as consistent with top‑tier hardware/photonics expectations.
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Healthcare Strength — Healthcare is described as comprehensive, covering medical, dental, and vision in current postings. Additional protections like life insurance and disability are also called out.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Equity grants for full‑time employees are commonly included alongside base pay. Some postings also mention performance‑based equity components.
Lightmatter Insights
What We Do
Lightmatter is a startup photonics company that has pioneered a new paradigm in processor chip architecture that uses photons instead of electrons. Now the leader in the photonic AI compute “space race,” this new class of high performance semiconductors is the foundation of Lightmatter’s mission to enable the growth of computing, reduce harmful emissions associated with this growth, and democratize computing for all. Lightmatter's technology accelerates critical operations in deep neural networks, using an array of programmable photonic elements fabricated alongside transistors in conventional computer chip fabrication processes. Our close-knit team of engineers has created an integrated photonics chip and ultra-high performance interconnect that is faster, more efficient, and cooler than anything else on earth (or anything ever experienced before) to power the next giant leaps in human progress.
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