Senior Optical Engineer

To make electronics, you need chips, wafers, transistors, reticles, and... To make these, you must see, test and manufacture them at scale—faster and better than ever before. That's where KLA comes in. Whether you're early in your career or an experienced professional, you'll solve complex challenges, work alongside brilliant minds and help shape the future of technology.

The Semiconductor Products and Customers (Semi PC) business unit designs, builds and sells KLA’s product portfolio to help chip manufacturers meet high-quality standards for technologies like AI, data centers, automotive and electronic devices. Our inspection, metrology, and analytics systems detect and monitor defects across logic and memory chips, specialty semiconductors, wafers, reticles, advanced packaging, process equipment and materials. We also develop technologies for specialty processes, IC substrates, and PCB manufacturing, including etch and deposition, component inspection, and imaging and analytics.

The Broadband Plasma (BBP) division is the market-leading optical inspection system used by logic, foundry, and memory customers to detect critical defects at advanced nodes. These tools combine broadband plasma technology with unmatched sensitivity and speed to support high-volume manufacturing.

In this role, you will play a key part in advancing business priorities by delivering high-impact work across your area of expertise.

The candidate will join a team of optical engineers within the BBP division to develop innovative wafer inspection products. Optics is the core part of BBP products, which include high-brightness light-sources, broadband coatings, complex optical subsystem and high-speed sensors. This position is responsible for the complete design process of one or multiple optical subsystems to support BBP roadmap:
Provide technical leadership by owning and investigating optical architecture and design options to find the best option through systematic trade off among different performance metrics as well as costs & schedule implications. Closely collaborate with external suppliers and internal functional teams such as technology and system engineering to gather optical performance dependencies. Translate system requirements into optical, mechanical and metrology requirements.

Develop and implement optical metrology and alignment concepts to achieve the targeted optical performances. Follow KLA design processes, including design reviews, part procurement from vendors, testing, integration and release. Solve problems that arise within the proto or released inspection systems.

Solid background in optics, physics or related field such as imaging system aberrations, Fourier optics, polarization, Radiometry etc. Hands‑on experiences in lens design, especially in diffraction limited large numerical aperture microscope objective lenses. Experienced in developing the optical system performance and design requirements Experienced in developing optical alignment, error budgets, and metrology for high precision and highly complex optical system. Expert user of Code V or Zemax.

Proficiency with Matlab or Python. Prior experience in semiconductor inspection or lithography equipment is strongly preferred. Direct work experiences in DUV or VUV optics is desirable. A self‑starter with intellectual curiosity, a quick learner who desires to grow by acquiring new knowledge and skills in multi‑disciplinary hardware technologies. Detail oriented, methodical problem‑solving and critical thinking skills. Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Work well with others in a leading or supporting roles; willing to share knowledge with junior engineers.