Senior/Principal Reliability Engineer (Power Devices)

Team – R&D Engineering

Location – Cambridge

Contract – Permanent (Full time or part time)

Company Background

Cambridge GaN Devices (CGD) is a tech scale-up with the mission to transform the way the world deploys energy by delivering the most efficient power switch. No more wasted energy and yes to efficient power electronics that can enable less CO2 emissions and smaller, less bulky electronics. CGD is a fabless semiconductor company, spun out of the world-renowned Electronics Department at the University of Cambridge, and is focused on designing, developing and commercialising power transistors and Integrated Circuits based on the most efficient material available, Gallium Nitride (GaN).

Triggered by a world-wide need to save energy and achieve a more sustainable use of natural resources, the power electronics market will see significant innovation over the next 10 years. Having already built a team who are leaders in their field, with decades of expertise in the power semiconductor industry, CGD are leading the way towards this energy-revolution.

Would you like to contribute to shaping the future of power electronics, by joining a growing team in a passionate and innovative environment? Join CGD and be part of the adventure!

The Opportunity

CGD is looking for a Senior/Principal Reliability Engineer to join our growing engineering team. The Senior/Principal Reliability Engineer will primarily be responsible for all reliability aspects of CGDs GaN power devices and ICs. This includes designing the reliability experiments as well as analysis and developing reliability models. The Senior/Principal Reliability Engineer will also develop new electrical reliability tests, specifically for GaN ICs, and gain insight into their reliability by collaborating with TCAD and multi-physics simulation engineers. In this role, the successful applicant will be able to use and develop new knowledge on power devices, GaN and reliability testing, which is at the forefront of GaN device R&D.

Ultimately, the Senior/Principal Reliability Engineer will be responsible for producing confident reliability data and information for CGD and our customers.

This role is based at the company’s office and lab in Cambridge, UK, although it is expected that some travel will be required from time to time.

This role could be full time or ‘family-friendly’ part time.

Main Responsibilities

• Design and execute device reliability characterisation experiments of GaN power ICs
• Development of characterisation strategies and test planning (DOE)
• Development of GaN device reliability models
• Develop new test methods for GaN-IC reliability
• Write reliability-specific application notes and white papers
• Lead reliability aspects of Technology R&D and Product R&D projects
• Design and run customer-specific tests
• Lead TCAD and multi-physics simulation projects for reliability insight
• Liaise with electrical engineers for the development of reliability characterisation systems

Requirements

Essential

• A degree in a relevant engineering or science subject
• Expert knowledge of power semiconductor device reliability, preferably GaN
• Good knowledge of statistical methods for data analysis and software such as JMP, Minitab or Python
• Strategic thinker with practical skills and experience
• Inspires confidence in colleagues, partners and customers
• Comfortable in a fast-paced start-up environment
• Willing and able to travel and work with partners in Europe, the Americas and Asia
• Pro-active by nature, responsive to the changing needs of projects and the business
• Good communication and presentation skills. In particular, writing white papers and application notes as well as presenting technical topics to an audience
• A mindset for precise and high-quality results
• An eye for detail

Desirable

• Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of wide bandgap semiconductor device physics, preferably GaN power devices
• Skilled in power electronics, in particular power electronic circuits for reliability testing
• Experience with finite element modelling (TCAD and multi-physics)
• Experience with semiconductor failure analysis
• Knowledge of power device packaging technologies and their reliability aspects
• Project management qualifications
• Six Sigma black belt

Benefits

• Excellent salary
• Share options scheme available (so you own a piece of the company!)
• Pension scheme (6% Company contribution)
• Life Assurance (3x Salary)
• BUPA Cash Plan (Level 3)
• Flexible working options (both location and times)
• Annual leave allowance of 33 days (including bank holidays)
• Training and development
• Cycle to work scheme
• IP bonus scheme
• Involvement in collaborative projects and grants with University of Cambridge and other partners
• Recruitment referral bonus
• Regular social events including frequent company lunches, annual summer party, Christmas party, team building and wellbeing activities

We believe in equal opportunities

It takes a diverse and inclusive community of passionate, talented and committed people to build a system to shape the future of power electronics.

We are committed to providing equal opportunities to all current and prospective employees regardless of age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, or marriage and civil partnership.

We believe that a more inclusive workplace, where people of different backgrounds work together, ensures better outcomes for all employees. We aspire to have a diverse workforce because, in our view, diversity enables better business outcomes. From application to interview, we place inclusion at the heart of all we do.

We are well set up for collaborative hybrid working, with some members of the team working in the UK office and some from home in the UK and other cities in Europe and Asia.