{"id":1907507,"url":"https://alion.io/job/western-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development","title":"Principal Process Engineer — Advanced Semiconductor Device Development","company":{"id":8924,"name":"Western Digital","domain":"wdc.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/wdc","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"SmartRecruiters","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":75,"open_postings":12,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":1,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":37,"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"}},"role":"Industrial Engineering","role_family":"Industrial Engineering","seniority":"lead","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Ulm, Germany"],"countries":["DE"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":91000,"max_usd":174000,"period":"year","method":"role_seniority_country_cell","sample_n":10},"experience_years_min":5,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-05T12:56:46Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-05","last_verified_at":"2026-10-17T17:57:47Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":12,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":12},"description":"WD is building the infrastructure behind the AI-driven data economy.\nAs AI scales, so does data. Every interaction, every model, every system generates data that must be stored, managed, and made accessible over time. That’s where we come in.\nWe combine deep engineering expertise with global-scale manufacturing to deliver the storage systems that make AI possible, powering hyperscale data centers, cloud platforms, and enterprise infrastructure worldwide.\nThis isn’t theoretical work. It’s real systems, at real scale, people solving some of the hardest challenges in technology today.\nWe’re looking for people who want to build, solve, and operate at that level.\nJoin us and let’s shape the future of data.\n For over three decades, breakthrough advances in computing and intelligent systems have been driven by innovation at the intersection of physics, materials, manufacturing, and engineering. The next generation of high-performance technologies will require entirely new approaches to semiconductor processing, integration, and scalable device fabrication.\nWe are looking for a Senior Process Engineer to help develop advanced semiconductor device technologies from early research through process integration and pilot manufacturing. This role combines hands-on cleanroom work, process development, external partner coordination, and deep technical problem solving across complex wafer fabrication flows.\nYou will work closely with multidisciplinary R&D teams to enable next-generation device platforms through advanced process engineering and integration.\nWhat you’ll be doing:\nDevelop and optimize semiconductor wafer fabrication processes across multiple process modules.\nDrive process integration from incoming wafer through fully processed devices.\nWork hands-on in the cleanroom across lithography, dry etch, wet etch, dielectric deposition, implantation, metallization, and wafer handling processes.\nDevelop and qualify advanced substrate preparation, thinning, bonding, and backside processing flows.\nDefine process characterization strategies including CD control, overlay budgets, metrology, and defect inspection.\nPartner with external vendors and manufacturing partners to support complex multi-site wafer flows.\nDrive DOE learning cycles, root-cause investigations, yield analysis, and process optimization.\nCollaborate with device, characterization, packaging, and reliability teams to correlate process behavior with device performance.\nBuild scalable process documentation, travelers, specifications, and process-control methodologies.\nSupport transfer of development processes into pilot manufacturing environments.\n What we need to see:\nBS, MS, or PhD in Materials Science, Physics, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or related field.\n5+ years of semiconductor process development experience.\nStrong hands-on cleanroom experience across multiple semiconductor processing modules.\nExperience with compound semiconductor or advanced device processing preferred.\nUnderstanding of lithography, etch, dielectric deposition, implantation, metallization, and process integration.\nExperience working with process characterization, SPC, DOE, and failure analysis methodologies.\nStrong experimental problem-solving and debugging skills.\nAbility to work effectively across multidisciplinary engineering teams.\nWays to stand out from the crowd:\nExperience developing advanced or non-standard semiconductor process flows.\nExperience with wafer bonding, substrate removal, or heterogeneous integration.\nStrong process integration mindset with broad cross-module understanding.\nExperience building scalable process infrastructure in R&D environments.\nFamiliarity with advanced metrology and defect characterization techniques.\nDemonstrated ability to rapidly iterate and solve complex process problems.\n WD thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global company, we believe the most effective way to embrace the diversity of our customers and communities is to mirror it from within. We believe the fusion of various perspectives results in the best outcomes for our employees, our company, our customers, and the world around us. We are committed to an inclusive environment where every individual can thrive through a sense of belonging, respect and contribution.\nWD is committed to offering opportunities to applicants with disabilities and ensuring all candidates can successfully navigate our careers website and our hiring process. Please contact us at  to advise us of your accommodation request. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.\nNotice To Candidates: Please be aware that WD and its subsidiaries will never request payment as a condition for applying for a position or receiving an offer of employment. Should you encounter any such requests, please report it immediately to WD Ethics Helpline or email .","description_format":"text","description_chars":5047,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":5,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[{"language":"English","level":"All levels","optional":false}]},"benefits":[],"hiring_locations":[],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Electrical & Electronic Engineering","Enterprise Storage Systems","Digital Storage"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-05T13:15:49Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":59,"band":"ok","label":"Likely open","p_open":1,"p_active":0.588,"p_room":1,"age_days":11,"expected_fill_days":37,"reasons":["conf:0","stale_co","velocity","win:early","comp:brand"],"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/western-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/western-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-17T19:14:35Z","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":2503,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-18T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"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":8924},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=8924"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fwestern-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"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%2Fwestern-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"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%2Fwestern-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development"},{"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/western-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fwestern-digital-principal-process-engineer-advanced-semiconductor-device-development"}]}