Senior Hardware Design Engineer San Jose, CA

Fairchild Imaging, headquartered in San Jose, California is a specialty image sensor design and manufacturing company with deep experience in developing leading edge performance CMOS image sensors. Our portfolio of image sensors can be found in many high-performance imaging applications like space exploration, medical x-ray, sciences, quantum computing, machine vision, low light, and 360 situational awareness.

Senior Hardware Design Engineer – Imaging Systems and High-Speed Electronics

We are seeking an experienced Senior Hardware Design Engineer to lead the design and development of advanced PCB-based imaging platforms for next-generation CMOS image sensors, board-level cameras, and X-ray camera systems. This role requires deep expertise in high-speed digital hardware design, signal integrity, sensor integration, and system-level optimization for imaging performance and interface interoperability.

In addition to hands-on technical leadership, this role may include responsibility for mentoring engineers, driving technical direction across projects, and contributing to team growth and engineering excellence.

• Provide technical leadership across hardware development programs for imaging and sensor-based products.
• Mentor and guide junior and mid-level hardware engineers in schematic design, PCB layout, debug methodologies, and engineering best practices.
• Lead hardware design reviews, architecture discussions, and cross-functional technical decision-making.
• Establish and promote engineering standards for high-speed PCB design, signal integrity, documentation, and validation.
• Support project planning, task prioritization, resource estimation, and execution tracking for hardware development activities.
• May directly manage a small team of hardware engineers, including:
  • goal setting and performance feedback,
  • career development and coaching,
  • hiring and onboarding support.

• Architect, design, and validate high-performance PCBs for board-level camera systems supporting state-of-the-art CMOS image sensors.
• Develop hardware platforms for:
  • image sensor bring‑up and debugging,
  • electrical and optical characterization,
  • internal evaluation platforms.
• Design interfaces and interconnects for high-speed sensor communication, including:
  • SLVS/SLVS‑EC
  • MIPI CSI-2 / D-PHY / C-PHY
  • LVDS and other high-speed serial interfaces.
• Collaborate with sensor, firmware, software, and applications teams to ensure successful sensor integration and system functionality.
• Optimize board architecture, power delivery, grounding, clocking, and layout to maximize sensor performance and minimize electrical noise.
• Evaluate and mitigate hardware design impacts on end-user image quality, including:
  • EMI/EMC coupling,
  • timing integrity,
  • power integrity artifacts.
• Design and develop hardware platforms for X-ray camera systems integrating image sensors, detector electronics, and high-speed data interfaces.
• Architect PCB solutions for sensor interface, power management, control electronics, and data acquisition subsystems.
• Lead hardware development focused on robust USB‑C interoperability
  , including:
  • USB-C orientation support,
  • enumeration and configuration reliability,
  • sustained high‑bandwidth streaming performance,
  • cable and host interoperability robustness.
• Analyze and debug signal integrity challenges across USB-C and other high-speed interfaces in demanding imaging applications.

• Serve as subject matter expert in PCB design for high-speed/high-density electronics.
• Perform and guide best practices for:
  • signal integrity analysis,
  • impedance control,
  • return path management,
  • power integrity optimization.
• Drive design reviews, schematic reviews, layout reviews, and hardware validation plans.
• Support prototype bring‑up, debug, failure analysis, and design iteration.

• BS/MS in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 8+ years of hardware design experience, including complex multilayer PCB design.
• Proven expertise designing high-speed digital systems and high-density PCBs.
• Demonstrated technical leadership, mentoring, or team lead experience.
• Strong hands‑on…