Principal Design Engineer

Job Summary

The Principal Design Engineer provides technical leadership across the architecture, design, qualification, and sustaining support of LED driver products from concept through production. Serving as the subject matter expert in EMI/EMC design and FCC Part 15 Class A and Class B compliance, this role establishes design direction, guides complex technical decisions, and collaborates with product management, manufacturing, quality, and cross-functional engineering teams as well as internal and external certification laboratories. Responsible for delivering reliable, manufacturable, scalable, and cost-effective solutions while mentoring engineers, strengthening internal design standards, advising on industry standards, and driving continuous improvement throughout new product development and sustaining engineering.

Key Tasks & Responsibilities (Essential Functions)

• Applies EMI/EMC design knowledge to LED driver designs, including input filtering, PCB layout practices, grounding, shielding, and component selection to support FCC Part 15 Class A and Class B compliance targets.
• Leads EMI pre-compliance reviews and testing for conducted and radiated emissions, interprets results against FCC Part 15 limits, and drives corrective actions when design margins are not achieved.
• Troubleshoots EMI issues using simulation, lab equipment, and structured root-cause analysis, identifying noise sources and implementing practical mitigation methods that balance compliance, cost, manufacturability, and product performance.
• Collaborates with test labs, certification partners, quality, manufacturing, and cross-functional engineering teams to support successful FCC Part 15 Class A/B qualification and release of LED driver products.
• Strengthens the broader design team’s EMI/EMC capabilities through project collaboration, practical design guides, and group training.
• Leads new product development, product enhancements, and cost reduction activities, including product definition and parts selection.
• Initiates and develops concepts for new products based on Project Charters provided by the Product Manager.
• Ensures concepts align with standard manufacturing methods used in the appropriate manufacturing facility.
• Drives structured product development meetings and alignment for major projects.
• Provides guidance, support, and knowledge sharing to less experienced colleagues to help them develop skills and advance their careers.
• Develops and distributes engineering data, including schematics, layouts, and quality reports.
• Reviews competitor samples and documentation to create benchmark reports.
• Identifies and evaluates emerging technologies, industry trends, and design practices that can improve product performance, cost, reliability, or manufacturability.
• Continuously seeks process improvements in productivity, quality, and manufacturing.
• Supports continuous improvement and transformation initiatives through team participation and follow-up actions.

Skills and Minimum Experience Required

• 10+ years of experience in a similar electrical engineering, power electronics, or LED driver design role.
• Highly experienced in the practical application of EMI/EMC principles and meeting FCC Part 15 Class A and Class B requirements for conducted and radiated emissions in switching power electronics.
• Experience with EMI filter design, PCB layout mitigation techniques, grounding, shielding, component placement, and noise-source isolation to improve compliance margin and product robustness.
• Hands-on experience with EMI troubleshooting and pre-compliance testing using spectrum analyzers, LISNs, near-field probes, antennas, current probes, oscilloscopes, and related lab setups.
• Strong PCB design layout knowledge and manufacturing rules, with emphasis on layout practices that support EMI performance and manufacturability.
• Demonstrated ability to define technical direction, guide product architecture, and make high-impact design decisions for complex power electronics or LED driver platforms.
• Experience leading technical design reviews, risk assessments, and trade-off discussions across engineering, manufacturing, quality, product management, and certification stakeholders.
• Ability to mentor engineers, establish design best practices, and influence technical standards across multiple projects or product platforms.
• Proven ability to lead resolution of complex technical issues through structured problem solving, data-driven analysis, and cross-functional collaboration.
• Strong understanding of engineering fundamentals, including electrical and electronic principles.
• Strong knowledge and experience with power electronics circuits such as Boost, Buck, Flyback, LLC, LCC, resonant converters, linear regulators, transient protection circuits, EMI filter design, electronic component selection, and lifetime calculations for electronic switch mode power supplies.
• Working knowledge of electrical and RF/EMI simulation environments such as Ansys and PSpice.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills; able to communicate clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Familiar with the use of general electronics lab equipment, including oscilloscopes, power analyzers, AC/DC power supplies, multimeters, and electronic loads, to validate power electronics and LED driver performance.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Microcontroller programming skills and experience, including Cortex M0 microcontrollers, 8-bit microcontrollers, C/C++, assembler knowledge, and communication protocols.
• Experience with Altium or similar PCB design tools.
• Experience with the development and use of AI agents to evaluate and predict EMI performance of a designs.
• Familiarity with LEAN and Six Sigma methodology and practices such as standard work, time study, cause-and-effect analysis, 5WHY analysis, and other DMAIC tools.