Senior Photonic Engineer
Location: Austin, TX
Employment Type: Full-Time
Role Overview
ORCA Computing is seeking a Senior Photonic Engineer to define the technical direction for state-of-the-art performance across our integrated photonics platforms. This role pairs hands-on design expertise with broad technical fluency across fabrication, testing, and packaging, and stays current on alternative approaches across the field to keep ORCA’s platforms at the leading edge.
Key Responsibilities
- Determine the future direction for state-of-the-art performance across ORCA’s photonic component and platform roadmap
- Maintain knowledge of alternative photonic platforms, materials, and approaches across industry and academia to inform ORCA’s technical strategy and competitive positioning
- Design and optimize ultra-low-loss passive components and electro-optic (EO) modulators, pushing performance toward the state of the art
- Apply full-breadth technical knowledge across design, testing, fabrication, and packaging to support those teams on device physics and performance tradeoffs
- Partner with test, fabrication, and packaging engineers to diagnose root causes of performance gaps and identify paths to improvement
- Translate state-of-the-art targets into concrete design, process, and characterization requirements
- Represent ORCA’s technical position through publications, patents, and external partnership discussions
- Maintain thorough documentation and communicate technical direction to leadership and the broader team
Required Qualifications
- Industry or research experience in photonic integrated circuit design and device physics, with experience pushing component performance toward state-of-the-art levels
- Technical fluency across the full PIC lifecycle: design, fabrication, characterization, and packaging
- Knowledge of alternative photonic platforms and approaches (e.g., competing material systems, integration schemes) and their tradeoffs
- Proficiency with simulation tools such as Lumerical MODE and FDTD
- Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills, with experience diagnosing performance gaps across design, fabrication, and packaging
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills for technical strategy discussions with leadership
- Must be based in Austin, TX, with hybrid work flexibility
Preferred Qualifications
- PhD in Photonics, Physics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field
- Hands-on experience with Si photonics
- Publication record and/or patents in integrated photonics
- Background in quantum photonics or quantum optics
