Principal FPGA Design Engineer

Principal FPGA Design Engineer

Location: Oxford

Permanent

Oxford Nanopore Technologies: Our goal is to bring the widest benefits to society through enabling the analysis of anything, by anyone, anywhere.

The company has developed a new generation of nanopore-based sensing technology for faster, information rich, accessible and affordable molecular analysis.

The first application is DNA/RNA sequencing, and the technology is in development for the analysis of other types of molecules including proteins.

The technology is used to understand and characterise the biology of humans and diseases such as cancer, plants, animals, bacteria, viruses, and whole environments.

With a thriving culture of ambition and strong innovation goals, Oxford Nanopore is a UK headquartered company with global operations and customers in more than 125 countries.

We are seeking a Principal FPGA Design Engineer to own the architecture and technical delivery of the FPGA subsystem for a high-throughput nanopore sequencing platform.

In this hands-on technical leadership role, you will set the technical direction and guide the engineering team while taking designs through the full lifecycle-from initial requirements and architecture through RTL implementation, custom-ASIC bring-up, lab validation, and product release.

Note: This is a technical leadership and mentorship role without direct line-management responsibilities.

Key Responsibilities

• System Architecture: Define and lead the FPGA architecture for our high-throughput sequencing products.
• RTL Design & Verification: Design and implement digital RTL using SystemVerilog, Verilog, or VHDL on AMD/Xilinx FPGAs. Build simulation testbenches and automated verification environments using tools like Questa or Vivado Simulator.
• Optimization: Optimize designs for high-speed data paths, throughput, power, timing closure, and resource utilization.
• Cross-Functional Integration: Collaborate closely with ASIC, hardware, firmware, and software teams to ensure seamless component integration and support custom-ASIC bring-up.
• Best Practices & CI/CD: Drive best practices in Git-based version control, continuous integration (CI), automated regression, and reusable IP development.
• Mentorship & Planning: Provide technical guidance and mentorship to FPGA and hardware engineers while contributing to project planning, risk assessments, and development schedules.

What We Are Looking For

Essential Qualifications & Experience:

• Education: Degree-level qualification in Electronic/Electrical Engineering (or a related discipline), or equivalent industry experience.
• RTL Expertise: Proven RTL design experience in SystemVerilog or Verilog, with the ability to read, debug, or modify legacy VHDL code.
• Full-Lifecycle Ownership: Demonstrated experience bringing FPGA designs from architecture and clock-domain crossing through to timing closure, hardware bring-up, and release.
• Toolchains & Interfaces: Strong working knowledge of AMD/Xilinx toolchains. Hands-on experience with high-speed interfaces (including DMA over PCIe) and interfacing with mixed-signal/analogue components.
• Automation & Lab Tools: Skilled in scripting for workflow automation (Python, Tcl, Make, CI systems) and hands-on debugging using logic analysers and oscilloscopes.
• Mindset & Communication: Self-motivated, adaptable in a fast-paced environment, and capable of translating complex technical concepts for multidisciplinary teams and non-specialists.

Desirable Experience:

• Experience across both AMD/Xilinx and Intel/Altera toolchains, including legacy toolchains like Xilinx ISE (e.g., Spartan-6).
• Background in ASIC/SoC design, logic synthesis, or custom ASIC bring-up.
• Experience developing biotech, medical device, or scientific instrumentation products.
• Familiarity with biological/sensor signal processing or regulatory standards (e.g., ISO 13485, IEC 62304).

Why Join Us?

You will play a pivotal role in shaping cutting-edge sequencing technologies that make a real-world impact. If you thrive in a collaborative, fast-evolving environment where you can take full ownership of high-impact engineering projects, we want to hear from you.

We offer outstanding benefits to include an attractive bonus, generous pension contributions, private healthcare and an excellent starting salary.

If you are looking to utilise your skills to really make a difference to humankind, then consider joining our team and apply today!

Please note that no terminology in this advert is intended to discriminate on the grounds of a person's gender, marital status, race, religion, colour, age, disability or sexual orientation. Every candidate will be assessed only in accordance with their merits, qualifications and abilities to perform the duties of the job.