Optical Coating Process Engineer

Position: Staff Optical Coating Process Engineer
Primary

Duties & Responsibilities

* Have in-depth knowledge of reactive magnetron sputtering processes and their relationship to thin-film growth processes sufficient to understand their effects on optical, structural and mechanical properties of multilayer thin films.

* Have sufficient analytical knowledge of automated thin film vacuum sputter deposition chamber operation to support Process change decisions regarding;
Programmable Logic Controllers, Agility HMI automation, process control interfaces, process control setup, laser monitoring, Manufacturing execution system and database interface.

* Have in depth knowledge and experience with vacuum equipment including, pumps, valves, feedthroughs, Mass flow valves, pressure gauges, magnetron cathodes, heaters and heat control systems.

* Understand Optical thin-film design theory and how to use Optical thin-film design codes for characterizing manufacturing errors. Working knowledge of basic design building blocks, effective indices and the various applications of symmetric design components.

* Analytical knowledge of automated Optical monitoring systems used for accurate layer thickness control of coatings with as many as 400 layers and synchronous control of deposition process.

* Ability to interpret and analyze data from radiometric fiber optic measurement system utilizing grin lenses and tunable laser sources.

* Working together with engineers in a team environment where project actions are interdependent upon multiple team members where shared ideas may be accepted or challenged in an effort to achieve the best outcome for all.

* Responsible for daily decisions on process, product and equipment problems and their impact on production costs and on-time delivery commitments.

* Develop new tools and processes for manufacturing new products and integrate them into the manufacturing systems.

* Interact closely with the Manufacturing team to monitor and clarify procedures.

* Support Planning and Manufacturing to optimize product flow, throughput and on-time delivery goals.

* Perform continuous process improvement and development of tools to assist engineering and manufacturing in evaluation of processes, diagnosis of equipment failures, product and business. Support decisions using measurable statistics.

* Maintain and optimize predictive tools to maximize run yields and minimize downtime.

* Perform product qualifications for new products or for specified process changes

* Write or modify work instructions for tasks associated with coating processes, measurement instrumentation and software tool utilized by technicians.

* Participate in major development efforts driven by Management and work together with Senior engineers to identify how to best support the effort

* Communicate well with outside vendors and customers, fostering good working relationships.

Education & Experience

* BS degree or higher in Engineering, Physics or related field

* 5 years of professional optical coating process engineering in manufacturing.

Skills

* In depth knowledge of reactive magnetron sputter deposition processes, thin film growth processes and their interrelationships

* In depth knowledge of thin film design theory, thin film design code development and product application.

* General knowledge of statistical software packages, interpretation of statistics and an ability to clearly communicate statistical results to others.

* Experience Decreasing/Eliminating process variations using problem solving methodologies to; understand root causes, confirm hypotheses, implement resolutions, and optimize improvement

* General knowledge optical thin film metrology for telecommunication filters

* Familiarity with Matlab/Visual Basic/Labview/Python codes for equipment control and data analysis and proficient in one of these languages.

* Have proficient general computer skills. Some examples are; experience with commercial thin film software, and other programs, Word, Excel, power point etc.

* Experience TFCALC preferred.

Working Conditions

* Shift and 'on-call' work may be required, particularly where manufacturing/production equipment is in continual 24-hour operation.

Physical Requirements

* Able to…