Yield Engineer

A NauWork client is seeking a Yield Engineer, microLED to join their team. The position is on-site in Sunnyvale, California .

This venture-backed technology company is advancing next-generation optical interconnects built around massively parallel microLED arrays. Its technology is designed to address the demanding bandwidth, power, and latency requirements of AI/ML clusters, high-performance computing, and modern data center infrastructure. Founded by experienced optical networking technologists, the company offers the opportunity to work with a highly accomplished team at the forefront of microLED and photonic device innovation. The successful candidate will make foundational contributions to technology with the potential to shape the future of computing connectivity.

In this role, the Yield Engineer will serve as the technical detective behind microLED and photodetector device programs, isolating, characterizing, and determining the root causes of failures across devices, arrays, and integrated modules. Their findings will directly guide design, process, and reliability decisions for the company’s platform. This is an opportunity to close the loop between laboratory failures and meaningful improvements in how advanced devices are designed and built. The engineer will collaborate across technical teams while communicating rigorous conclusions to engineering leaders, customers, and foundry partners.

Responsibilities:

Root-cause analysis: Lead end-to-end yield improvement and failure analysis of GaN microLEDs, photodetector arrays, and integrated interconnect modules, from failure isolation through physical root cause and corrective action.

Data analysis: Perform data analysis of production and experimental lots, identify sources of variability and process improvements.

FA techniques: Plan and perform electrical, optical, and physical FA, including EL/PL imaging, SIMS, EMMI/photoemission, OBIRCH/thermal, curve tracing, and fault localization on single devices and dense arrays.

Physical analysis: Direct and interpret cross-sectioning and imaging (FIB, SEM, TEM, EDX, CT/acoustic microscopy) to identify defects, material anomalies, and interface issues.

Failure characterization: Build failure signatures and defect libraries; distinguish process-induced, design-induced, and stress-induced failure modes.

Feedback loop: Translate FA findings into actionable recommendations for device, process, packaging, and reliability teams, and verify the effectiveness of corrective actions.

Reporting: Produce clear, rigorous FA reports and present root-cause conclusions to engineering and leadership; support customer- and foundry-facing analyses.

Required Experience:

Education: MS or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, or a related field (or BS with equivalent industry experience).

Experience: 5-8+ years of failure analysis experience in semiconductor, optoelectronic, or photonic devices.

Root-cause rigor: Demonstrated ability to drive structured root-cause investigations (8D, fishbone, fault-tree) to definitive physical conclusions.

Device physics: Solid understanding of semiconductor and optoelectronic device physics and common failure/degradation mechanisms.

Analysis skills: Proficiency in data analysis and scripting (e.g., Python, MATLAB) and strong technical communication.

Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States.

Preferred Experience:

GaN microLEDs: Prior experience with GaN-based microLED or LED/laser failure analysis is strongly preferred but not required.

Experience with FA on high-density emitter or detector arrays.

Familiarity with packaging, hybrid bonding, or heterogeneous-integration failure modes.

Experience supporting reliability qualification and correlating FA to stress-test results.

Background in optical/photonic module or interconnect FA.

To Learn More:

503-388-9585

833-NAU-WORK

careers.nauwork.com

Category: Engineering - Electrical (Semiconductor) Position: Yield Engineer, microLED Location: On-site — Sunnyvale, California Job Type: Direct-Hire, Full-Time