{"id":4276939,"url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-senior-photonics-design-engineer","title":"Senior Photonics Design Engineer","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":"senior","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Oxford, United Kingdom"],"countries":["GB"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":5,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Python","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-13T17:06:59Z","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 developing optical circuit switching technology for AI infrastructure, aimed at significantly reducing latency and cost in data centre networks. As we move towards real-world deployment, you’ll have genuine ownership of your area, working alongside a highly technical team of physicists, engineers and software specialists on one of the hardest problems in AI infrastructure.\nJob Overview\nThis role will focus on the design, optimisation, and development of high performance photonic components for next generation Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs), contributing directly to our future tape-outs and core IP roadmap.\nYou will work closely with photonics designers, layout engineers, and testing teams to improve the performance of integrated photonic devices through theoretical analysis, simulation, modelling, and design innovation.\nThis is a highly technical role suited to someone who enjoys solving difficult physics and engineering problems in a collaborative deep-tech environment. You will take a lead role in the development of key building blocks within our optical switching and photonic systems roadmap, and other integrated photonic components critical to future high port count architectures.\nWhat you’ll be doing\nLead the design and optimisation of integrated photonic components for silicon photonics and related PIC platforms\n\nPerform electromagnetic simulations, modelling, and theoretical analysis to improve device performance\n\nValidate simulation results against experimental measurement data\n\nDevelop innovative component designs informed by current research and emerging techniques\n\nCollaborate with layout engineers to integrate components into PDK libraries and tape-out flows\n\nWork closely with fabrication and testing teams to iterate on device performance\n\nLead the development roadmap for future photonic components and architectures\n\nDrive long term improvements in PIC loss, manufacturability, and scalability\n\nLead technical discussions, design reviews, and cross functional problem solving\n\nMentor and guide other engineers in photonic design and simulation practice\n\nStay current with advances in integrated photonics through research literature and conferences\n\nWhat we’re looking for\nPhD, or equivalent industry experience, in Photonics, Physics, Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field\n\nTypically 5+ years of relevant experience in integrated photonic device design, including taking designs through to tape-out and measurement\n\nStrong theoretical understanding of guided optics and photonic device physics\n\nHands-on experience designing and simulating integrated photonic components\n\nExperience working with silicon photonics or InP photonic platforms\n\nStrong analytical and mathematical problem solving capability\n\nA track record of meaningful technical contributions, whether through publications, patents, or shipped technology\n\nExperience using photonic simulation tools and modelling workflows\n\nPython programming experience for simulation, analysis, or automation\n\nDeep understanding of Photonic IC design and fabrication flows\n\nKnowledge of semiconductor manufacturing processes\n\nExperience working in commercial R&D or product development environments\n\nExperience mentoring or technically guiding other engineers\n\nStrong communication skills and attention to detail\n\nAbility to work effectively within multidisciplinary engineering teams\n\nYou will join a highly ambitious deep-tech company operating at the intersection of AI infrastructure, semiconductors, and photonics. We are building foundational technology with the potential to reshape the performance envelope of future AI systems.\nAlongside a collaborative and research-driven environment, you will have the opportunity to work on genuinely difficult engineering problems with direct impact on product direction and company growth.\nIf you’re excited by integrated photonics, advanced device design, and solving hard engineering problems at the frontier of AI infrastructure, we’d love to hear from you.","description_format":"text","description_chars":4067,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":5,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"phd","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":"2026-11-13T22:59:42Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-senior-photonics-design-engineer","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/salience-labs-senior-photonics-design-engineer.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-13T22:59:42Z","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":45814,"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-senior-photonics-design-engineer"},{"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-senior-photonics-design-engineer"},{"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-senior-photonics-design-engineer"},{"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-senior-photonics-design-engineer\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fsalience-labs-senior-photonics-design-engineer"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":4276939}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"saliencelabs.ai","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":4276939},"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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