Full-Time
Staff / Senior Staff Photonics Test Engineer
Lightmatter
201-500 employees
Photonic computing hardware for AI acceleration
Compensation Overview
$187k - $260k/yr
Mountain View, CA, USA
Hybrid
Flexible hybrid workplace model.
Master's, PhD
 QA & Testing (1) |
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- A Master's degree in Photonics, Physics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field is required.
- A minimum of 8+ years of experience in silicon photonics test development is required.
- Proven industrial experience supporting new product introduction and volume production is required.
- Deep understanding of silicon photonics components and circuits is required.
- Experience working with design teams to define test cells for model feedback and validation is required.
- Hands-on experience characterizing and testing photonics components and circuits is required.
- At least 3 years of direct experience in high-speed photonic device testing and system link bring-up is required, along with familiarity with AWG, DCA, DSO, PNA, and LCA test equipment.
- Experience automating test systems using Python is required.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills are required to identify and resolve issues during testing.
- Ability to convey complex technical concepts to technical and non-technical stakeholders is required.
- Candidates must have the capacity to comply with federally mandated United States export control laws.
- Work directly with architecture and design teams to understand the technology and conceptualize characterization and test techniques that provide feedback for design model validation.
- Architect test concepts, test platforms, and design-for-test rules, and provide feedback during the technology concept phase.
- Create detailed test-plan documentation and ensure timely execution.
- Define, develop, and set up wafer-, package-, and system-level tests for silicon photonics products.
- Develop test software for test execution, data analysis, and parameter extraction.
- Work with vendors to specify and procure test equipment.
- Set up and operate optical equipment, including tunable lasers, power meters, polarization synthesizers, OBR/OVA, and high-speed test equipment.
- Engage with silicon and platform validation teams and bridge gaps between test and validation teams.
- Work with outsourced semiconductor assembly and test teams to define, validate, and refine test techniques for high-volume manufacturing.
- Work with the reliability team on pre- and post-stress testing needs.
- Keep current with developments in silicon photonics technology and testability.
- A PhD in Photonics, Physics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field is preferred.
- At least 2 years of photonic component or circuit design experience is highly preferred.
Lightmatter develops photonic computing hardware to speed up AI workloads using light-based processing. Their photonic systems run AI tasks faster and use about 90% less energy than traditional processors. They target AI and autonomous vehicle workloads and collaborate with universities to advance electro-photonic systems. Revenue comes from hardware sales, software licenses, and partnerships, with a goal of bringing scalable photonic computing to market for faster, energy-efficient AI and AV applications.
Company Size
201-500
Company Stage
Series D
Total Funding
$822M
Headquarters
Boston, Massachusetts
Founded
2017
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- NVIDIA NVLink Fusion integration, announced June 2, 2026, validates Lightmatter’s interconnect roadmap.
- Guide DR, launched April 27, 2026, targets Q4 2026 sampling and higher rack density.
- Roy Kim joined March 16, 2026, signaling aggressive scaling from validation to deployment.
What critics are saying
- Passage L20 samples in late 2026, delaying meaningful revenue and customer proof.
- CPO manufacturing remains brutal; vClick and Guide DR still depend on partner yields.
- NVIDIA or hyperscalers can internalize photonic interconnects, collapsing Lightmatter’s standalone moat by 2028.
What makes Lightmatter unique
- Lightmatter’s Passage and Guide platforms attack AI interconnect bottlenecks with photonics, not electricity.
- It partners with NVIDIA, Synopsys, GUC, ASE, and OCP, shaping emerging optical standards.
- Its manufacturing network spans TSMC, GlobalFoundries, Tower Semiconductor, Amkor, and ASE.
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Benefits
Health Insurance
Dental Insurance
Vision Insurance
Life Insurance
Disability Insurance
Health Savings Account/Flexible Spending Account
Unlimited Paid Time Off
Flexible Work Hours
Remote Work Options
Paid Vacation
Paid Sick Leave
Paid Holidays
Sabbatical Leave
Hybrid Work Options
Stock Options
Company Equity
401(k) Retirement Plan
Wellness Program
Mental Health Support
Gym Membership
Phone/Internet Stipend
Home Office Stipend
Commuter Benefits
Training & Development
Conference Attendance Budget
Professional Development Budget
Family Planning Benefits
Fertility Treatment Support
Adoption Assistance
Childcare Support
Elder Care Support
Relocation Assistance
Employee Referral Bonus
Tuition Reimbursement
Professional Certification Support
Mentorship Program
Meal Benefits
Employee Discounts
Company Social Events
Growth & Insights and Company News
6 month growth
↓ -3%1 year growth
↓ -5%2 year growth
↓ -5%Lightmatter, a photonic computing specialist, has joined NVIDIA's NVLink Fusion ecosystem to deliver high-performance optical connectivity for AI infrastructure. The company will provide Co-Packaged Optics and Near-Packaged Optics products compatible with NVIDIA's optical and SerDes technologies. Lightmatter's bi-directional optical link architecture will create a unified platform for semi-custom AI factories whilst reducing fibre and connector requirements by 50%. The technology enables semi-custom XPUs to connect with NVIDIA switch silicon through Lightmatter's products, creating seamless high-bandwidth connectivity for chips from various suppliers. The partnership combines Lightmatter's Passage CPO solutions with NVIDIA's NVLink Fusion architecture. Analysts view this collaboration as a critical milestone in the maturation of co-packaged optics, providing hyperscalers with a blueprint to overcome traditional I/O bottlenecks and scale AI clusters.
Lightmatter has unveiled Guide DR, a high-density laser network interface card that quadruples rack density compared to conventional external laser small form factor pluggables. The liquid-cooled LNIC relocates the light source from the faceplate into the chassis, solving scaling bottlenecks whilst leveraging existing cooling infrastructure. Built to OCP NIC 3.0 dimensions, a single Guide DR module can support up to 51.2 Tbps of aggregate bandwidth. Four modules in a 1 RU switch tray enable 204.8 Tbps of switching bandwidth, eliminating the need for larger 4 RU chassis with liquid-cooled lasers. The module supplies 200 mW of optical power per fibre across up to 64 fibres, driving 256 lanes at 200G each, with zero front-panel footprint. Guide DR will begin sampling in Q4 2026.
Lightmatter, a photonic computing company, has appointed Roy Kim as Vice President of Product to lead deployment of its photonic interconnect platform. Kim brings over 15 years of AI infrastructure experience from Google, AMD and NVIDIA. At Google since 2021, Kim served as Director of AI Infrastructure Product Management. He previously led Data Center GPU Product Management at AMD and spent eight years at NVIDIA in AI and high-performance computing roles. At Lightmatter, Kim will oversee product roadmap, management, marketing and strategy. The appointment follows significant product launches, including the Guide light engine in January and the Passage L20 optical engine in March. Lightmatter's technology aims to eliminate data bottlenecks in AI data centres through photonic interconnects.
Lightmatter has achieved a record-breaking 1.6 Tbps throughput per fibre with its Passage Co-Packaged Optics chiplet, marking a significant milestone in AI interconnect performance. The technology, developed in collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, uses a 16-wavelength DWDM architecture and delivers up to eight times more bandwidth per fibre than existing solutions. The silicon-proven platform combines Lightmatter's photonic engine with Qualcomm Technologies' 112G PAM4 optical SerDes chiplet, addressing interconnect bottlenecks limiting AI model scaling. The architecture reduces power consumption whilst enabling connectivity for next-generation processors and switches, with Passage L-Series photonic engines on track to deliver 100 Tbps and beyond. The record-breaking Passage L-Series photonic interconnects are now available through evaluation kits for lead customer testing.
Lightmatter has unveiled vClick Optics, the industry's first detachable fibre array unit for co-packaged optics advanced packaging. The technology enables high-volume manufacturing of 3D CPO-enabled chips by allowing manufacturers to verify optical engines before final integration, reducing yield loss risks. vClick Optics achieves insertion loss below 1.5 dB and supports high-bandwidth Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing for 32-100Tbps optical interconnects. The technology integrates SENKO's connector solutions with Lightmatter's photonic technology and is compatible with advanced packaging flows from major foundries. Developed in partnership with ASE and SENKO Advanced Components, vClick transforms permanent fibre attachment into a plug-and-play solution. Lightmatter will showcase the technology at the Optical Fiber Communication conference in Los Angeles from 15-19 March 2026.