Physical Design Senior Engineer

The Role:

As a Physical Design Senior Engineer, you will take technical ownership of the implementation for highly complex digital blocks, including high-speed interfaces, mixed-signal control logic, and automotive low-power modules. Working at the intersection of logic and physics, you are responsible for ensuring that the functional design intent is fully preserved while being highly optimized during the physical implementation phase.

Key responsibilities:

1. Advanced Physical Implementation & Constraint Ownership

· Full-Flow Execution: Take technical ownership of the RTL-to-GDSII implementation, including Floorplanning, Place and Route (P&R), and Clock Tree Synthesis (CTS).

· Execution Strategy: Drive a "constraint-driven" approach to minimize iterations and ensure optimal physical results.

· Bottleneck Resolution: Analyze functional contexts to identify and resolve routing congestion and timing bottlenecks proactively.

· Constraint Maintenance: Hands-on management of SDC constraints at every stage; responsible for cleaning, regenerating, and validating timing constraints to ensure they reflect silicon reality (e.g., Multi-Cycle Paths, False Paths).

2. Timing Closure & ECO Implementation

· Sign-off Focus: Deliver complex timing closure for designs with multiple clock domains and asynchronous interfaces using DMSA and OCV/AOCV/POCV techniques.

· Advanced ECO Execution: Implement Engineering Change Orders (ECO) at the gate level and propose physical-level adjustments when required to meet timing or power targets.

· Design Integrity: Perform and validate Signal Integrity (SI) and Power Integrity (IR-Drop/EM) analyses to ensure robust sign-off.

Requirements (Must Have):

· Experience: 10+ years of professional experience in Semiconductor Physical Design and Digital Implementation.

· SDC Expertise: Expert knowledge of SDC format with the ability to write, debug, and manage complex constraints for Multi-Mode Multi-Corner (MMMC) designs.

· Timing & STA: Solid hands-on experience with STA tools (PrimeTime or Tempus) and managing violations in advanced technology nodes or critical environments (e.g., Automotive).

· CDC Knowledge: Proficiency in Clock Domain Crossing (CDC) analysis and verification.

· Automation Skills: Excellent scripting capabilities (Tcl, Python, or Perl) for flow automation and report analysis.

Preferred Qualifications (Nice to Have):

· RTL-to-GDSII Integration: Proven experience interfacing with Front-End teams to optimize RTL for better physical synthesis and routability.

· Manufacturing & Reliability: Practical experience implementing DFM (Design for Manufacturing) rules and performing Yield analysis to ensure high-volume production stability.

· Advanced Power Methodologies: Hands-on experience with Low Power design flows using UPF or CPF, including the implementation of power-gating and multi-voltage domains.

· Domain-Specific Compliance: Familiarity with Automotive safety standards (ISO 26262), specifically regarding physical redundancy or electromigration (EM) requirements for mission-critical chips.

· Hierarchy & Partitioning: Experience managing large-scale hierarchical designs, including partitioning and top-level integration challenges.

What Do We Offer?

· Join a highly innovative microelectronics company working at the forefront of RISC-V and advanced SoC technologies.

· Opportunity to play a key technical leadership role bridging industry and public research.

· Collaboration with top-tier research institutions and industrial partners across Europe.

· Flexible working conditions and hybrid work environment.

· Competitive remuneration aligned with seniority and expertise.

· Position based in Rome.

We are looking for outstanding people willing to join our mission to change this industry and help to build a better world.

If you feel identified with Openchip, please contact us.

At Openchip & Software Technologies S.L., we believe a diverse and inclusive team is the key to groundbreaking ideas. We foster a work environment where everyone feels valued, respected, and empowered to reach their full potential – regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or gender identity.