Lightmatter
Staff /Sr Staff Laser Module & Systems Characterization Engineer
$187K–$240K
Mountain View, CA · Senior Staff · Full-time · Posted Aug 21, 2026
- Experience
- BS + 8 years, MS + 6 years, or PhD + 3 years; hands-on laser-module characterization experience is required.
- Education
- BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Optical Engineering, Photonics, or a closely related field.
- Visa sponsorship
- Candidates should have capacity to comply with the federally mandated requirements of U.S. export control laws.
About the job
Owns bring-up, characterization, and validation of laser modules and photonic systems from first-light through manufacturing qualification and production hand-off.
What you'll do
- Lead laser-module bring-up and optical performance optimization; characterize optical links and investigate anomalies through module-level root-cause analysis.
- Develop manufacturing and characterization test plans, measurement protocols, automation scripts, and data pipelines.
- Prepare characterization reports and production hand-off materials; support laser-safety validation and manufacturing scale-up.
What they ask for
- BS + 8 years, MS + 6 years, or PhD + 3 years in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Optical Engineering, Photonics, or a closely related field.
- Hands-on laser-module characterization experience in a research or NPI environment.
- Proficiency with optical spectrum analyzers (OSA), optical power meters, lightwave component analyzers (LCA), high-bandwidth oscilloscopes, and signal generators.
- Experience with structured optical or electro-optic assembly test plans, Python or MATLAB measurement automation and statistical analysis, and written characterization reports.
Nice to have
- DWDM optical link bring-up and validation; laser module NPI, EVT, or manufacturing bring-up.
- Experience with thermal control, laser safety interlocks, heterogeneous photonic integration, optical link budgets, or multi-channel photonic platforms.
Pay
$187,000 — $240,000 USD (total compensation; base salary range not stated)
Tools
Python, MATLAB, OSA, LCA, SPC, gauge R&R, JMP, DWDM
AI focus
Characterize and validate laser modules and photonic systems used for AI data center infrastructure and AI/HPC workloads.
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