Etched
Physical Design Engineer - Flow & Methodologies
About this role
Etched seeks a Physical Design Engineer to architect and maintain an automated RTL-to-GDSII flow for AI inference chips. You'll own the complete CAD infrastructure, from tool deployment to PPA optimization, enabling the design team to iterate faster and achieve superior performance metrics.
What you'll do
- Design and maintain automated RTL-to-GDSII flow including synthesis, place-and-route, and signoff handoff
- Automate end-to-end PD workflows with regression management, version control, and release processes
- Build and manage CAD infrastructure including tool qualification, deployment, and resource optimization
- Create block and chip-level power grid meshes using design rules and EM/IR analysis
- Establish timing correlation across pre-route, post-route, and signoff tools
- Partner with design teams to debug issues and encode fixes into reusable methodology
What they're looking for
- RTL-to-GDSII flow architecture and automation
- Cadence Innovus/Genus or Synopsys Fusion Compiler
- Signoff tool integration (PrimeTime, Tempus, Voltus, Pegasus, Calibre)
- Tcl and Python for flow development
- Advanced node physical design (5nm and below)
- UPF low-power design and multi-mode multi-corner methodology
- PPA tuning and timing correlation
- Power grid and floorplanning design
Benefits
- Medical, dental, and vision coverage with $500/month credit for waiving medical
- Housing subsidy of $2,000 per month for local residents
- Relocation support for moving to San Jose
- Wellness benefits including fitness and mental health
- Daily lunch and dinner at office
- Unlimited compute budget subject to ROI justification
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Etched
Etched builds AI inference hardware, designing and manufacturing complex mechanical and electrical components for data center systems. The company is hiring mechanical engineers, PCB designers, hardware verification engineers, and software engineers to develop manufacturing processes, circuit boards, verification infrastructure, and internal tools across its hardware and operations.
- Website
- etched.com
Likely interview questions
- Walk us through how you architected an RTL-to-GDSII flow from scratch and what design principles guided your decisions.
- Describe your experience with timing correlation—what tools did you use and how did you resolve discrepancies between pre-route and post-route?