{"id":4342285,"url":"https://alion.io/job/nvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design","title":"Senior Software R&D Engineer, VLSI Physical Design","company":{"id":6,"name":"NVIDIA","domain":"nvidia.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/nvidia","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Workday","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":82,"open_postings":742,"ghost_share":0.023,"stale_share":0.616,"repost_share":0.053,"time_to_fill_p50_days":43,"computed_at":"2026-11-15T07:52:55Z"}},"role":"Backend","role_family":"Backend","seniority":"senior","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Santa Clara, United States","Austin, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":168000,"max":264500,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":264500},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":6,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"C++","optional":false},{"name":"Machine Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Perl","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Reinforcement Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Synopsys PrimeTime","optional":false},{"name":"Synopsys StarRC","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-30T00:00:00Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-30","last_verified_at":"2026-11-15T19:11:36Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":16,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":16},"description":"NVIDIA's success builds on a foundation of industry leading hardware. We achieve distinction through extensive design optimization, including combining the best of external EDA with highly optimized, internal EDA tools. Our team develops these tools by fusing advances in parallel computing, machine learning, and specialized algorithms for VLSI design. We are seeking a Senior R&D Software Engineer with proven experience in multiple areas of VLSI Physical Design Algorithms (sizing, buffering, CTS, legalization, incremental place and route etc.). Understanding both software and hardware aspects is the key. Creativity and self-drive to explore and perfect fast, high-capacity software is required. If you like to work across many technical areas and see your successes directly realized in the world's best AI hardware, it does not get any better than this!\nDeveloping software within a leading hardware company means getting to almost exclusively focus on the latest processes and most advanced designs. We're not bogged down by legacy support, niche roles, or convoluted approval processes. Our developers enjoy unusually high intellectual freedom and the ability to explore broad roles.\nWhat you’ll be doing:\nInvent new optimization engines that fuse traditionally independent engines (e.g., co-optimization of legalization and sizing) with the objective of increasing chip frequency while minimizing power consumption across a suite of internal optimization tools. These tools already outperform the industry's alternatives in high capacity timing closure and will advance even further with your contributions.\n\nImprove algorithms (in C++) for gate-level sizing, buffering, useful clock skew, cell legalization, power minimization, ECO routing, and incremental parasitic extraction.\n\nAs with any software engineering team, we do write a lot of code, but this is broader than a typical CAD or EDA role. Instead, we as a team own the whole process from discovery and invention of new optimization opportunities, to developing solutions and working directly inside design teams to facilitate deployment.\n\nWhat we need to see:\nBS, MS, PhD or equivalent experience in Electrical Engineering or Computer Science\n\n6+ years in VLSI algorithms development using C++\n\nStrong understanding of VLSI timing optimization and related concepts, including cell libraries, interconnect models, crosstalk, glitches, IR drop, timing constraints, corners, congestion, etc.\n\nFamiliarity with design implementation tools such as ICC2, Innovus, PrimeTime, Tempus, and StarRC and typical design flows written in Perl, Tcl, and Python\n\nStrong communication and interpersonal skills\n\nWays to stand out from the crowd:\nC++14 or newer experience, such as lambdas and concurrency\n\nDetailed understanding of how multiple Physical Design steps interact and how they can potentially be fused together to form hybrid engines that result in better PPA\n\nExperience in high performance software design including multithreading, distributed computing, efficient memory and I/O use, etc.\n\nHighly driven to craft outstanding software towards improving PPA with a dedication to continuous improvement\n\nExperience with reinforcement learning, GNNs (Graph Neural Networks), and other relevant machine learning frameworks, especially as applied to physical design\n\nNVIDIA is widely considered to be one of the technology world’s most desirable employers, and due to outstanding growth, our teams are rapidly growing. Are you passionate about becoming a part of a best-in-class team driving the latest in GPU and AI technology? If so, we want to hear from you!\nYour base salary will be determined based on your location, experience, and other objective job-related factors. The expected base salary ranges for this position are:168,000 USD - 264,500 USD for Level 4; and 196,000 USD - 310,500 USD for Level 5.\nYou will also be eligible for equity and benefits.\nApplications for this job will be accepted at least until November 3, 2026.This posting is for an existing vacancy.\nNVIDIA uses AI tools in its recruiting processes.\nNVIDIA is committed to fostering an inclusive work environment and proud to be an equal opportunity employer. As we highly value diversity in our current and future employees, we do not discriminate (including in our hiring and promotion practices) on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status or any other characteristic protected by law.","description_format":"text","description_chars":4542,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":6,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"phd","optional":false},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity"],"hiring_locations":[],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Processors, MCUs & AI Chips","Servers & Data Center Hardware","Computer Components","AI Chips & Accelerators"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-11-15T19:11:36Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"US","licensed_sponsor":true,"adverts_offering_sponsorship_24m":0,"sanctioned_now":false,"evidence":"H-1B filings in 12 months: 2,856 · green card filings: 799","filings_12m":2856,"filings_prev_12m":1684,"green_card_filings_12m":799,"median_offered_wage_usd":186407,"route":null,"cap_exempt":false,"checked_at":"2026-11-15T09:21:55+00:00","sources":["US Department of Labor: LCA disclosure data (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3)","US Department of Labor: PERM disclosure data (green cards)"],"filings_for_role_12m":1253}],"liveness":{"score":77,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.86,"p_room":0.9,"age_days":16,"expected_fill_days":43,"reasons":["conf:1","win:mid","comp:brand"],"computed_at":"2026-11-15T20:39:36Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":264500,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/nvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/nvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-15T20:39:36Z","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":15124,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-16T00:00:00Z"}},"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":6},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=6"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fnvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"free","price":{"credits":0,"usd":0},"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%2Fnvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design"},{"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%2Fnvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design"},{"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/nvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fnvidia-senior-software-rd-engineer-vlsi-physical-design"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":4342285}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"nvidia.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":4342285},"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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