Astera Labs
Optical / Photonics Validation Engineering, Senior Director
$260K–$295K
San Jose, California, United States +1 · Director · Full-time · Posted Jul 31, 2026
- Location
- San Jose, California, United States
California - Experience
- 8+ years.
- Education
- M.S. or Ph.D. in Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or equivalent field.
About the job
Leads validation strategy and execution for near-packaged and co-packaged optical systems, ensuring optical, electrical, and thermal performance from prototype through production.
What you'll do
- Lead the optical validation team and roadmap; develop and execute test plans and methodologies.
- Establish automated test frameworks, analyze data, and lead design-of-experiments to improve performance and yield.
- Coordinate with design, packaging, manufacturing, reliability, and quality teams to support production readiness and reliability.
What they ask for
- M.S. or Ph.D. in Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or equivalent field.
- 8+ years of experience in optical module testing, photonic component validation, or high-speed interconnect qualification.
- Deep understanding of optical measurements, optical alignment, and signal characterization; hands-on experience with optical instrumentation.
- Strong background in data analysis, automation scripting (Python, LabVIEW, MATLAB), and statistical validation methods.
Nice to have
- Experience with co-packaged optics, silicon photonics assemblies, and near-packaged optical interfaces.
- Knowledge of industry standards and compliance testing, reliability qualification, or system-level validation for networking and hyperscale data centers.
Pay
USD $260,000 to $295,000 base salary
Tools
Python, LabVIEW, MATLAB, IEEE 802.3, OIF, BERTs
Model-written summary · the original posting is authoritative