{"id":4276943,"url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-photonics-layout-lead","title":"Photonics Layout Lead","company":{"id":2029320,"name":"Salience Labs","domain":"saliencelabs.ai","url":"https://alion.io/company/saliencelabs","size_band":"11-50","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":"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":null,"experience_years_min":6,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Machine Learning","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-13T16:29:17Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-13","last_verified_at":"2026-11-13T19:17:24Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":0,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":0},"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 Photonics Layout Lead to join our Photonics team and lead our Layout team, taking technical and people leadership of the physical design, verification and development of advanced integrated photonic devices.\nYou will work closely with engineers across photonic design, layout and testing, setting the direction for how device and circuit requirements are translated into robust, fabrication-ready layouts. The role combines hands-on physical layout, design verification, programming and ownership of our internal design workflows, along with leading, developing and managing the layout engineers on your team and raising the standard of layout work across the company.\nThis is a hands-on leadership role for someone who enjoys working at the intersection of integrated photonics, semiconductor design and software. You should be comfortable leading the resolution of complex layout challenges, interpreting and challenging design requirements, and using programming to improve the speed, quality and repeatability of engineering work, while building a team that can do the same.\nWe are particularly interested in people who have led or significantly shaped integrated photonics or semiconductor IC layout work, and who have experience leading engineers, whether in industry, research or a strong academic environment.\nWhat you’ll be doing\nLead the Layout team, setting priorities, allocating work and ensuring the team delivers high-quality, on-time results\n\nLine manage layout engineers, including coaching, performance reviews, career development and objective setting\n\nSupport hiring and onboarding of new layout engineers as the team grows\n\nLead the development of physical layouts for integrated photonic components, structures and large-scale photonic designs\n\nTranslate photonic device and circuit requirements into fabrication-ready layouts, and help shape those requirements with the photonic design team\n\nOwn design verification, including DRC and LVS, and drive designs through the full layout and verification process to tape-out\n\nDefine, develop 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, and set best practice for the team to do the same\n\nOwn and evolve our internal component and design libraries\n\nDefine and support the development of appropriate test and characterisation structures\n\nLead layout reviews for design integrity, fabrication constraints and potential sources of failure\n\nAct as a technical point of contact for foundry and fabrication partners on design rules, process constraints and verification issues\n\nPlan and prioritise layout work across projects, balancing schedule, quality, risk and team capacity\n\nCollaborate closely with photonic design, testing and wider engineering teams, and represent the Layout team in planning and design discussions\n\nDrive improvements in layout methodology, tooling and verification processes\n\nMake photonic design workflows increasingly repeatable, reliable and efficient\n\nYou will own the Layout team’s technical direction and delivery, from individual components through to complex, full-chip integrated photonic designs and their 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\nTypically 6+ years of relevant experience in integrated photonics, photonic IC layout, semiconductor IC layout or design verification, including experience leading or owning layout work on complete designs\n\nExperience leading, managing or mentoring engineers, and a track record of developing people and building effective teams\n\nExtensive hands-on experience creating physical IC or photonic layouts using Python or other layout and EDA software\n\nStrong programming capability, ideally in Python or another relevant language, with experience building and maintaining layout automation\n\nThe ability to explain and discuss software or coding projects you have worked on in detail\n\nA strong understanding of integrated photonics or the broader semiconductor IC industry\n\nWorking knowledge of photonic IC design and fabrication flows, including experience taking designs through tape-out\n\nA deep understanding of how physical layout decisions interact with device design, fabrication and performance\n\nExperience with DRC and LVS verification, and with resolving complex verification issues\n\nExperience planning and prioritising work across multiple projects and engineers\n\nA collaborative approach and the ability to work effectively and influence 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 to both technical and non-technical stakeholders\n\nCandidates with particularly strong academic, research or project experience may also be considered where they can demonstrate the required practical capability and leadership.\nEven better if you\nHave a Master’s degree or PhD in integrated photonics, photonics, electrical engineering, physics or a related discipline\n\nHave led Python-based layout automation or framework development\n\nHave experience with photonic or semiconductor EDA tools\n\nAre familiar with common integrated photonic devices and structures\n\nHave knowledge of semiconductor manufacturing processes and fabrication technologies\n\nHave developed or maintained component or PDK libraries\n\nHave been involved in multiple photonic or semiconductor design cycles\n\nHave experience working within a commercial product development environment\n\nHave a background in photonic device design or semiconductor process development\n\nHave experience building or scaling a layout team or function, including hiring\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. You will join a highly collaborative engineering environment where you can shape not just individual designs, but also the methods, tools, processes and people behind our advanced photonic hardware.\nThe role is based in the UK on a hybrid basis, with four days per week on site and one day working from home.","description_format":"text","description_chars":7119,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":6,"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":"2026-11-13T19:17:24Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"GB","licensed_sponsor":true,"adverts_offering_sponsorship_24m":0,"sanctioned_now":false,"evidence":"Licensed UK visa sponsor (Skilled Worker)","filings_12m":null,"filings_prev_12m":null,"green_card_filings_12m":null,"median_offered_wage_usd":null,"route":"Skilled Worker","cap_exempt":false,"checked_at":"2026-11-13T08:07:55+00:00","sources":["UK Home Office: register of licensed sponsors (workers)"],"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":26,"reasons":["conf:3","win:early"],"computed_at":"2026-11-13T22:25:59Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-photonics-layout-lead","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-photonics-layout-lead.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-13T22:25:59Z","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":44758,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-14T00:00:00Z"}},"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":2029320},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=2029320"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fsalience-labs-photonics-layout-lead"},{"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%2Fsalience-labs-photonics-layout-lead"},{"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%2Fsalience-labs-photonics-layout-lead"},{"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/salience-labs-photonics-layout-lead\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fsalience-labs-photonics-layout-lead"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":4276943}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"saliencelabs.ai","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":4276943},"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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