{"id":1238311,"url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-photonics-layout-engineer","title":"Photonics Layout Engineer","company":{"id":2029320,"name":"Salience Labs","domain":"saliencelabs.ai","url":"https://alion.io/company/saliencelabs","size_band":"51-200","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Ashby","truth_index":null},"role":"Hardware","role_family":"Hardware","seniority":"junior","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"explicit","locations":["Oxford, United Kingdom"],"countries":["GB"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":51000,"max_usd":118000,"period":"year","method":"global_role_cell_scaled_by_country","sample_n":317},"experience_years_min":2,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Machine Learning","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-09-09T07:57:55Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-09-09","last_verified_at":"2026-09-27T23:08:52Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":18,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":18},"description":"About us\nSalience Labs is building the optical infrastructure that will power the next generation of AI. Our photonic switching technology delivers the high-speed, ultra-low latency networking fabrics AI datacenters need and can't get anywhere else. We're a multi-disciplinary team of physicists, engineers, and machine learning specialists on a mission to remove the bottlenecks holding AI infrastructure back.\nJob Overview\nWe are looking for a Photonic Layout Engineer to join our Photonics team and contribute to the physical design, verification and development of advanced integrated photonic devices.\nYou will work closely with engineers across photonic design, layout and testing, helping translate device and circuit requirements into robust, fabrication-ready layouts. The role will involve a combination of physical layout, design verification, programming and continuous improvement of our internal design workflows.\nThis is a hands-on engineering role for someone who enjoys working at the intersection of integrated photonics, semiconductor design and software. You should be comfortable working through complex layout challenges, interpreting design requirements and using programming to improve the speed, quality and repeatability of engineering work.\nDepending on your experience, you may join at Mid or Senior level. We are particularly interested in people who have worked on integrated photonics or semiconductor IC layout, whether in industry, research or a strong academic environment.\nWhat you'll be doing\nDevelop physical layouts for integrated photonic components, structures and larger photonic designs\n\nTranslate photonic device and circuit requirements into fabrication-ready layouts\n\nPerform design verification, including DRC and LVS\n\nSupport designs through the full layout and verification process\n\nDevelop and improve software-based workflows for photonic layout and design automation\n\nUse Python and relevant semiconductor or photonic design tools to create, manipulate and verify layouts\n\nMaintain and contribute to internal component and design libraries\n\nSupport the development of appropriate test and characterisation structures\n\nReview layouts for design integrity, fabrication constraints and potential sources of failure\n\nCollaborate closely with photonic design, testing and wider engineering teams\n\nContribute to improvements in layout methodology, tooling and verification processes\n\nHelp make photonic design workflows increasingly repeatable, reliable and efficient\n\nOver time, you will take ownership of increasingly complex layout work, progressing from individual components and structures through to larger integrated photonic designs and full design verification.\nWhat we're looking for\nA Bachelor's degree or equivalent in Physics, Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Optical Engineering, or another closely related technical discipline\n\nRelevant experience in integrated photonics, photonic IC layout, semiconductor IC layout or design verification\n\nHands-on experience creating physical IC or photonic layouts using Python or other layout and EDA software\n\nStrong programming capability, ideally with experience in Python or another relevant programming language\n\nThe ability to explain and discuss software or coding projects you have worked on in detail\n\nA good understanding of integrated photonics or the broader semiconductor IC industry\n\nWorking knowledge of photonic IC design and fabrication flows\n\nAn understanding of how physical layout decisions interact with device design, fabrication and performance\n\nA collaborative approach and the ability to work effectively across multidisciplinary engineering teams\n\nStrong critical thinking and attention to detail, particularly when reviewing layouts and resolving verification issues\n\nClear communication skills and the ability to explain technical decisions and trade-offs\n\nFor more experienced candidates, we would typically expect around two or more years of relevant work in integrated photonics or IC layout and verification. Candidates with particularly strong academic, research or project experience may also be considered where they can demonstrate the required practical capability.\nEven better if you\nA Master's degree or PhD in integrated photonics, photonics, electrical engineering, physics or a related discipline\n\nHands-on experience with Python-based layout automation\n\nExperience with photonic or semiconductor EDA tools\n\nFamiliarity with common integrated photonic devices and structures\n\nKnowledge of semiconductor manufacturing processes and fabrication technologies\n\nExperience developing or maintaining component or PDK libraries\n\nPrevious involvement in photonic or semiconductor design cycles\n\nExperience working with DRC and LVS verification\n\nExperience working within a commercial product development environment\n\nA background in photonic device design or semiconductor process development\n\nRelevant backgrounds could include integrated photonics design and layout teams, silicon photonics research groups, university or research institute environments, or semiconductor IC layout and verification teams.\nThis is an opportunity to work on genuinely challenging problems across photonics, semiconductor engineering and software, with meaningful ownership over the quality and effectiveness of physical design.\nYou will join a highly collaborative engineering environment where you can influence not just individual designs, but also the methods, tools and processes used to develop advanced photonic hardware.\nThe role is based in the UK on a hybrid basis, with three days per week on site.","description_format":"text","description_chars":5626,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":2,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":[],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United Kingdom","iso":"GB","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Optical Communications","Optics & Photonic Components"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-09-25T16:23:05Z"}],"liveness":{"score":70,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.781,"p_room":0.9,"age_days":18,"expected_fill_days":30,"reasons":["conf:6","urgency","win:mid","comp:junior"],"computed_at":"2026-09-28T05:45:00Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-photonics-layout-engineer","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-photonics-layout-engineer.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-09-28T05:48:49Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","usage":{"tier":"crawler","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":4023,"day_limit":5000,"remaining_today":977,"minute_limit":60,"resets_at":"2026-09-29T00:00:00Z"}}}