{"id":4040449,"url":"https://alion.io/job/neurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment","title":"Principal Optical Engineer - Active Alignment","company":{"id":678766,"name":"Neurophos","domain":"neurophos.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/neurophos","size_band":"201-500","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Ashby","truth_index":null},"role":"Semiconductors","role_family":"Semiconductors","seniority":"lead","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Austin, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":245000,"max":280000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":280000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":10,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":true,"technologies":[{"name":"C#","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Design of Experiments","optional":true},{"name":"Statistical Process Control","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-10T21:39:11Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-10","last_verified_at":"2026-11-11T07:22:59Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":0,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":0},"description":"About Neurophos\nThe demand for new data centers and AI compute is rapidly outpacing the planet's energy capacity. Digital solutions are hitting a power wall as we approach the physical limits of traditional silicon. Conquering this bottleneck means rethinking the fundamental architecture of inference compute. The industry's current path can't meet the need, so we're taking a different approach.\nInstead of traditional electronic circuits, we use silicon photonics and an active, programmable metasurface to perform matrix multiplications at the speed of light. Our optical cells are 10,000x smaller than traditional photonic components, enabling unprecedented density. By using photonics instead of electricity, our chips become more efficient as they scale. This architecture will deliver up to 100 times the energy efficiency of existing solutions while significantly improving performance for large-scale AI inference.\nWe’ve assembled a world-class team of industry veterans and recently raised a $110M Series A led by Gates Frontier. Participants include M12 (Microsoft’s Venture Fund), Carbon Direct Capital, Aramco Ventures, Bosch Ventures, Tectonic Ventures, Space Capital, and others.\nJoin us and shape the future of computing!\nLocation: Austin, TX. Full-time onsite position.\nReports To: VP, Optics\nFLSA Status: Exempt\nPosition Overview\nNeurophos seeks a Principal Optical Engineer to own active alignment for our optical processing unit (OPU). You will define how we align and bond fiber arrays, microlens arrays, collimators, metasurfaces, and photonic and detector chips to sub-micron and micro-radian tolerances. You will build the processes and stations to do so and take them from first lab prototypes to volume production with our manufacturing partners. You will work closely with the optical design, optomechanical, metrology, and manufacturing teams and serve as the company’s technical authority on active alignment.\nKey Responsibilities\nAlignment strategy and process\nOwn the active-alignment strategy for free-space and fiber-coupled OPU sub-assemblies: degrees of freedom, alignment sequence, datums, and the feedback signal for each step.\n\nTranslate optical tolerance budgets into alignment requirements, capture ranges and pass/fail criteria, working with optical design and optomechanical engineering.\n\nDevelop alignment algorithms: coarse search, gradient and hill-climb optimization, multi-axis merit functions and simultaneous alignment of many channels.\n\nDevelop bonding processes: adhesive selection, bond-line control, UV and thermal cure, cure-shift prediction and pre-compensation, and post-bond stability.\n\nEquipment and automation\nSpecify, build, or source active-alignment stations: hexapods and precision stages, machine vision, power- and image-based feedback, dispense and cure.\n\nDevelop and maintain alignment and station-control software, with data logging for process and yield analysis.\n\nQualify stations for accuracy, repeatability, cycle time and throughput.\n\nSuppliers and production\nTransfer alignment processes to contract manufacturers and component suppliers; write process specifications, work instructions and acceptance criteria.\n\nDrive yield, cycle time and cost from prototype through low-rate initial production; lead root-cause analysis and corrective action on alignment failures.\n\nQualify aligned assemblies through thermal cycling, shock, vibration, and long-term stability testing.\n\nMentor engineers and technicians across optics, optomechanics, and manufacturing.\n\nQualifications\nPhD or MS in Optics, Physics, Electrical or Mechanical Engineering, or a related field.\n\n10+ years developing active-alignment processes for photonic or optical assemblies, with at least one process taken into volume production.\n\nHands-on experience aligning fibers, fiber arrays, and micro-optics to photonic chips, lenses, or detectors with sub-micron precision.\n\nStrong understanding of Gaussian beam optics, mode coupling, and alignment tolerances and sensitivities.\n\nExperience with UV and thermal-cure adhesives, bonding processes, and cure-shift control.\n\nExperience specifying and using hexapods, precision motion systems, and machine vision.\n\nProgramming skills in Python, C#, or LabVIEW for instrument control, automation, and data analysis.\n\nTrack record of transferring processes to contract manufacturers and suppliers.\n\nComfortable using AI tools in your day-to-day engineering work. We are building AI into how we design, align, and test optics.\n\nPreferred Skills\nCommercial active-alignment platforms and their software environments.\n\nDesign of experiments, statistical process control, and yield modeling.\n\nWafer-level or panel-level alignment and bonding.\n\nWhat We Offer\nThis is an opportunity to play a pivotal role in an innovative startup redefining the future of AI hardware. Work on game-changing technology at the intersection of photonics and AI as part of a collaborative, brilliant team. You’ll contribute to a platform that redefines computational performance and accelerates the future of artificial intelligence. Come help us bring this transformative technology to the world.\nBenefits\nJoin a team that invests in your future and your well-being. At Neurophos, we offer:\n100% coverage of base health plan premiums for you and your dependents, plus HSA contributions.\n\nUnlimited PTO. No rigid vacation banks, just a focus on delivery.\n\n401(k) matching and stock option opportunities to ensure our success is your success.\n\nFull suite of voluntary benefits, including Dental, Vision, Life, Hospital, Critical Illness, and Accident insurance.\n\nPersonalized Benefits. Choose the plans that fit your life and take the cash back for those that don’t.","description_format":"text","description_chars":5720,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":10,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"master","optional":false},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Unlimited PTO"],"hiring_locations":[],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Processors, MCUs & AI Chips","AI Chips & Accelerators"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-11-10T22:01:23Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"US","licensed_sponsor":true,"adverts_offering_sponsorship_24m":0,"sanctioned_now":false,"evidence":"H-1B filings in 12 months: 1","filings_12m":1,"filings_prev_12m":0,"green_card_filings_12m":0,"median_offered_wage_usd":312500,"route":null,"cap_exempt":false,"checked_at":"2026-11-11T07:38:50+00:00","sources":["US Department of Labor: LCA disclosure data (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3)"],"filings_for_role_12m":0}],"liveness":{"score":86,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.86,"p_room":1,"age_days":0,"expected_fill_days":43,"reasons":["conf:3","win:early"],"computed_at":"2026-11-11T05:49:22Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":280000,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/neurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/neurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-11T07:58:25Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":12431,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-12T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":678766},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=678766"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fneurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":2,"usd":0.2},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fneurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fneurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/neurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fneurophos-principal-optical-engineer-active-alignment"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":4040449}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"neurophos.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":4040449},"note":"people open to offers who fit this vacancy"}],"note":"The same data through MCP tools: https://alion.io/mcp/open needs no sign-in (compact searches, postings, people); https://alion.io/mcp with an Alion account has everything. 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