Applications Engineering – Principal Engineer

Job Description and Requirements

We Are

Synopsys is the leader in engineering solutions from silicon to systems, enabling customers to rapidly innovate AI-powered products. We deliver industry-leading silicon design, IP, simulation and analysis solutions, and design services. We partner closely with our customers across a wide range of industries to maximize their R&D capability and productivity, powering innovation today that ignites the ingenuity of tomorrow.

You Are

You have spent years deep in semiconductor physics, building and validating models that have to predict real silicon behavior, not theoretical outcomes. The difference between a model that works in a lab and one that survives production at a foundry is something you have learned the hard way, and you know how to close that gap before a customer finds it. You are comfortable sitting with wafer data that does not make sense yet, pulling it apart until the story emerges, then translating that into a compact model someone can actually use in an OPC flow.

Working across R&D, product teams, and customer sites does not intimidate you. You have been the person in the room who can explain why a calibration failed to an engineer in Taiwan at 6am, then turn around and brief a product manager on what needs to change in the next release. You do not wait for clean data or perfect specs. You ask the right questions, build what is needed with what you have, and move the work forward.

At Synopsys, you will be the technical authority that field teams and customers rely on when modeling gets hard. The problems are real, the technology nodes are advanced, and what you build will directly affect whether a customer can tape out on time.

What You'll Be Doing

• Calibrate and validate semiconductor models for advanced process nodes working directly with customer wafer data, test structures, and characterization results
• Generate and maintain compact models used in customer OPC engagements, ensuring accuracy and performance across lithography workflows
• Debug complex modeling issues at customer sites, working with Field Applications Engineers to resolve calibration failures, data quality problems, and deployment blockers
• Build and maintain automated validation and regression environments that catch model quality issues before they reach customers
• Collaborate with R&D and Product Engineering to translate field requirements into product enhancements, contributing directly to roadmap discussions and feature prioritization
• Deliver technical training and enablement to customers, supporting evaluations, benchmarks, and proof-of-concept work that drives technology adoption
• Develop best practices, methodology documentation, and workflow automation that improve modeling productivity across the field organization

The Impact You Will Have

• Customers will tape out faster because the models you deliver are accurate, validated, and ready to deploy in production OPC flows
• Field teams will resolve modeling issues in days instead of weeks because you have built the debug frameworks and knowledge base they need
• Product releases will better reflect real customer needs because you are the bridge between what breaks in the field and what gets prioritized in development
• Model quality across the organization will improve because the automated regression systems you build catch issues early and consistently
• Strategic accounts will adopt new Synopsys modeling technologies faster because you have proven they work in their specific process context
• Junior engineers across field and product teams will grow their modeling expertise because you mentor through real problems, not abstract theory
• The company will make better technical bets because your field experience informs which modeling approaches actually scale in production environments

What You'll Need

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Semiconductor Engineering, or a related technical field
• 8+ years building, calibrating, or validating semiconductor device models in TCAD, SPICE, or lithography modeling contexts
• Deep understanding of semiconductor device physics and how process technology choices affect model behavior and accuracy
• Experience developing compact models and working through calibration methodologies that balance accuracy, runtime, and usability
• Proven track record supporting customer-facing technical engagements where you were the expert in the room solving real deployment problems
• Programming capability in Python, Tcl, Perl, or similar scripting languages is a strong plus, especially for automation and workflow development
• Experience applying machine learning techniques to modeling or characterization work is a differentiator

Who You Are

• You can walk into a customer meeting with incomplete wafer data and a calibration that failed overnight, and walk out with a plan that gets the engagement back on track
• When a model does not match silicon, you do not guess. You methodically work through test structures, process assumptions, and measurement noise until you find the root cause
• You know how to influence without authority. Product teams listen to you because your feedback is specific, grounded in field reality, and comes with a clear technical rationale
• Mentoring happens naturally for you. When a field engineer is stuck on a modeling issue, you do not just fix it, you show them how to think through the next one
• You can present a complex modeling tradeoff to a VP in two sentences without losing the nuance, and then turn around and debug a Tcl script with an engineer
• Working across time zones and organizations does not slow you down. You are organized enough to manage multiple customer engagements, product discussions, and internal projects without dropping threads

The Team You'll Be Part Of

You will be part of the Field Applications Engineering organization supporting semiconductor modeling across strategic customer accounts in the US. This role collaborates closely with product engineering teams in Sunnyvale and Hillsboro, R&D groups developing next-generation lithography solutions, and field teams deployed at foundries and leading-edge semiconductor companies. You will be based in Austin, TX, with regular interaction across Synopsys sites and customer locations as technical needs require.

Rewards and Benefits

We offer a comprehensive range of health, wellness, and financial benefits to cater to your needs. Our total rewards include both monetary and non-monetary offerings. Your recruiter will provide more details about the salary range and benefits during the hiring process.

At Synopsys, we want talented people of every background to feel valued and supported to do their best work. Synopsys considers all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, military veteran status, or disability.

In addition to the base salary, this role may be eligible for an annual bonus, equity, and other discretionary bonuses. Synopsys offers comprehensive health, wellness, and financial benefits as part of a competitive total rewards package. The actual compensation offered will be based on a number of job-related factors, including location, skills, experience, and education. Your recruiter can share more specific details on the total rewards package upon request. The base salary range for this role is across the U.S.