Firmware Development Engineer

Summary:

VIAVI (NASDAQ: VIAV) is a global provider of network test, monitoring and assurance solutions for telecommunications, cloud, enterprises, first responders, military, aerospace, and railway. VIAVI is also a leader in light management technologies for 3D sensing, anti-counterfeiting, consumer electronics, industrial, automotive, government and aerospace applications.

About the Role
As a Senior Firmware Developer at VIAVI Solutions, you will design, develop, debug, and maintain embedded firmware for the MAP modular optical test platform and its cassette ecosystem. The MAP platform is a rack‑mounted chassis hosting hot‑swappable optical test modules (cassettes) covering a broad range of fiber optic test and measurement applications.

You will work across multiple cassette architectures as well as chassis‑level infrastructure including FPGA bridges, microcontrollers, and Linux kernel/driver integration.

Key Responsibilities

Cassette Firmware Development

Develop and maintain firmware for ARM‑based cassettes (embedded Linux, C/C++) and DSP‑based cassettes (uClinux, C/C++)

Implement SCPI command protocol handlers for instrument control and measurement data acquisition

Develop multi‑threaded real‑time signal processing pipelines using FFT, DSP, and SIMD optimizations

Interface with optical hardware components via I2C, SPI, UART, and USB

FPGA Interfacing & Development

Interface cassette firmware with FPGA co‑processors for signal processing, optical triggering, and hardware acceleration via memory‑mapped registers

Maintain and enhance the MAP platform PCIe bridge FPGA (Verilog) which provides bus translation between the host processor and cassette backplane

Debug FPGA register‑level interactions and timing issues across SPI and PCIe domains

Microcontroller Firmware

Develop firmware for bridge board microcontrollers (C) that manage FPGA programming, card‑present detection, I2C register interfaces, and chassis power sequencing

Maintain power management microcontroller firmware controlling chassis power rails, standby/power‑cycle sequencing, and watchdog functionality

Kernel & System‑Level Work

Contribute to Linux kernel and device tree customization on the chassis controller

Debug and resolve hardware‑software integration issues including I2C bus contention, display pipeline conflicts, IRQ handling, and power management

Develop and maintain system services, udev rules, and shell scripts for chassis lifecycle management (boot, hot‑plug, reboot, shutdown)

Cross‑Functional Collaboration

Work closely with hardware engineers on board bring‑up, schematic review, and signal integrity debugging

Collaborate with the software team on communication between cassette firmware and the web GUI / front panel applications

Support manufacturing with calibration firmware, production test scripts, and factory provisioning tools

Leverage AI‑augmented development workflows (e.g., AI coding assistants) to accelerate firmware development, debugging, analysis and unit‑testing

Required Qualifications

BS or MS in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field

7+ years of embedded firmware development experience

Strong proficiency in C and C++ for embedded systems (bare‑metal and Linux)

Hands‑on experience with ARM and/or DSP processor architectures

Experience with FPGA interfacing (register‑level, SPI/I2C/memory‑mapped I/O); HDL (Verilog or VHDL) reading ability preferred

Solid understanding of serial communication protocols: I2C, SPI, UART, USB

Experience with embedded Linux (kernel configuration, device trees, cross‑compilation, driver development)

Proficiency with debugging tools: JTAG, oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, serial consoles

Familiarity with version control (Git) and CI/CD build systems

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with DSP platforms and real‑time signal processing (FFT, filtering, spectral analysis)

Experience with Xilinx Zynq or similar ARM+FPGA SoC development

Experience with AVR or similar 8‑bit microcontrollers

Knowledge of SCPI protocol and test & measurement instrument firmware

Experience with fiber optic components and optical test instrumentation

Experience with PCIe protocol and bridge design

Knowledge of RTOS concepts (FreeRTOS, uClinux, or similar)

Experience with Docker‑based embedded build environments and Buildroot/Yocto

Familiarity with Debian packaging and systemd service architecture

Experience with AI‑augmented development tools and workflows

Pay range:  $86,929 – $161,439. Exceptional qualifications, experience and location may impact salary. VIAVI offers a competitive benefits package that includes paid time off, health, life and disability insurance, 401(k), and a bonus program.

VIAVI Solutions is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer – minorities/females/veterans/persons with disabilities.

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