Full-Time

Photonics Technical Lead

Lightmatter

Lightmatter

201-500 employees

Photonic computing hardware for AI acceleration

Compensation Overview

CA$185k - CA$217k/yr

+ New hire equity grant + Annual performance-based equity

Toronto, ON, Canada

Hybrid

Category
Hardware Engineering (2)
,
Requirements
  • A Ph.D. in Photonics, Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, or a related discipline, with at least 3 years of relevant post-degree experience (or equivalent).
  • A minimum of 8 years of experience in photonic devices, photonic integrated circuits, and semiconductor physics.
  • Strong understanding of silicon photonics
  • Experience of closely collaborating with cross-functional engineering teams, like photonics design, packaging, thermal, system engineering and firmware to name a few.
  • Ability to convey complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders with strong and clear communication
  • Demonstrated strong problem solving skills specifically pertaining to problems that do not have obvious solutions
Responsibilities
  • Engage with a cross-functional team to design and deliver a successful high-volume laser product
  • Collaborate with product and architecture teams to drive new laser concepts
  • Work closely with hardware and software teams to translate high level laser module product requirements and architecture specifications into a detailed engineering execution plan
  • Engage in problem-solving to resolve design and manufacturing challenges for innovative high-performance laser solutions
  • Actively collaborate across disciplines—with electronics, photonics, mechanical, thermal and package-design engineering teams—to build laser systems, control algorithms, PICs, and control ASICs that meet performance, power, and production requirements
  • Collaborate with control-system and test engineers to define production test and validation protocols, as well as to characterize components and debug test results from prototype level to validation
  • Work with external vendors to ensure timely development and delivery of key processes and components
Desired Qualifications
  • Strong understanding of laser physics
  • Experience in lasers or silicon photonics for datacom applications
  • Experience with control systems and system engineering
  • Experience working in a high volume manufacturing environment
  • Demonstrated technical leadership of a cross-functional team
  • Willing and able to learn quickly, self-starter with a “no task is too big or small” attitude

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

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Roy Kim from Google leads product scaling after Guide and Passage L20 launches.
  • $400M raised at $4.4B valuation funds photonic interconnect expansion for hyperscalers.
  • Partnerships with GUC, Synopsys, and Qualcomm accelerate Passage 3D adoption in AI clusters.

What critics are saying

  • NVIDIA's NVLink-Ultra locks out third-party interconnects in H200 clusters by 2027.
  • Intel bundles Ponte Vecchio interconnects at predatory prices, capturing 80% CPU market share.
  • TSMC 3nm yield issues halt Lightmatter production, delaying deployments by 6-12 months.

What makes Lightmatter unique

  • Passage L200 and M1000 enable edgeless I/O with photonic chiplets atop AI processors.
  • Guide light engine delivers 51.2 Tbps per module using VLSP for AI data centers.
  • vClick Optics provides detachable fiber arrays with under 1.5 dB loss for CPO manufacturing.

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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

Headcount

6 month growth

0%

1 year growth

6%

2 year growth

6%
Business Wire
Mar 11th, 2026
Lightmatter achieves record 1.6 Tbps per fiber with photonic interconnect chiplet

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.

The Associated Press
Mar 11th, 2026
Lightmatter launches vClick Optics, first detachable fiber array for high-volume CPO production with <1.5 dB loss

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.

The Register
Mar 11th, 2026
Lightmatter's photonics chip cuts datacenter fiber costs in half with 6.4Tbps bidirectional tech

Lightmatter has unveiled its Passage L20 optical engine, designed to halve fibre usage in datacentres through near-package optics (NPO) rather than co-packaged optics. The chip, aimed at a 2027 launch, connects via copper to switch ASICs and breaks signals into up to 32 bidirectional fibres operating at 200 Gbps each. The L20 offers 6.4 Tbps throughput whilst consuming 30 watts. Just 16 units could replace 512 traditional 200 Gbps pluggable modules in a 102.4 Tbps switch, significantly reducing power consumption. CEO Nick Harris views NPO as a temporary solution before co-packaged optics arrive around 2028. Lightmatter also introduced vClick, a surface-attach fibre array compatible with advanced packaging technologies. The company expects to begin sampling L20 chips in late 2026.

Yahoo Finance
Jan 29th, 2026
Synopsys ties up with Lightmatter on co-packaged optics for AI chips

Synopsys has partnered with Lightmatter to integrate its 224G SerDes and UCIe IP into Lightmatter's Passage 3D Co-Packaged Optics platform, targeting low-latency, high-bandwidth AI infrastructure. The collaboration reinforces Synopsys' positioning in co-packaged optics and high-speed connectivity for AI chips. However, analysts suggest the deal alone is unlikely to materially shift near-term prospects compared to larger catalysts like first-quarter 2026 results due 25 February and progress integrating Ansys following recent debt issuance. Fair value estimates from the Simply Wall St Community range widely from $376,000 to $556,000 per share. With Synopsys trading at a premium valuation, investors face execution risks around AI initiatives and Ansys integration. The company's shares have declined but may be up to 36% below fair value.

Business Wire
Jan 27th, 2026
Lightmatter and GUC partner to bring 3D co-packaged optics solutions to AI hyperscalers

Lightmatter, a leader in photonic interconnect solutions for AI, has partnered with Global Unichip Corp. (GUC) to commercialise Passage 3D Co-Packaged Optics solutions for hyperscale AI infrastructure. The collaboration combines Lightmatter's photonic interconnect technology with GUC's ASIC design and advanced packaging expertise. The Passage platform uses silicon photonics to deliver enhanced bandwidth density and power efficiency for chip-to-chip communications, addressing connectivity bottlenecks in next-generation AI and high-performance computing workloads. By extending AI cluster scale-up capabilities across multiple racks, the solution aims to improve training time and throughput for frontier AI models. GUC will integrate Passage into its ASIC designs using advanced node chiplet and packaging workflows. The partnership targets hyperscale data centre operators seeking to overcome bandwidth and power constraints.