Physical Design CAD Lead - Semiconductor Engineering

About the Role

Astera Labs is seeking a Physical Design CAD Lead remote to join our innovative team. This role offers a unique opportunity to shape the future of semiconductor design for AI infrastructure. As a leader in this field, you will drive the development of complex chips that address critical data bottlenecks, enabling AI scalability.

What You'll Do

• Design and maintain automated flows for Synthesis, Place & Route, and Floor-planning.
• Develop robust environments for Static Timing Analysis, Power Analysis, and Physical Verification (DRC/LVS/ERC).
• Write custom plug-ins and scripts to enhance vendor tools tailored to our specific process node constraints.
• Create automated dashboards and feedback loops to track and improve Power, Performance, and Area metrics.
• Collaborate with EDA vendors (Synopsys, Cadence, Siemens/Mentor) for flow development and results analysis.

Requirements

• B.Sc in Electrical Engineering.
• Professional experience with back-end industrial tool suites (e.g., Synopsys Fusion Compiler or Cadence Genus, Innovus).
• Expert-level proficiency in Tcl and Python for flow automation and data parsing.
• Deep understanding of Physical Design concepts including clock tree synthesis, routing congestion, timing closure, and signal integrity.
• Hands-on experience with sign-off flows.
• Very good communication skills.

Nice to Have

• Experience with 5nm, 3nm, and more advanced processes.
• Knowledge of compute farm management (LSF/Slurm) and revision control (Git) for managing large design databases.

What We Offer

• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• Remote work flexibility.
• Opportunities for professional growth and development.
• A diverse and inclusive work environment.
• Access to cutting-edge technology and resources.