Develop embedded firmware for optical interconnect ASICs based on microLED technology.
About the role
As a Firmware Engineer at Avicena, you will write the firmware for an optical engine ASIC and module controllers, bringing up boards and silicon, calibrating analog blocks, and training the optical link. The optical engine is an ASIC designed for optical interconnect based on microLED technology.
What you'll do
- Develop embedded C/C++ firmware for ARM Cortex-M targets and other MCU families, both bare metal and under a real-time operating system.
- Implement, debug, and test peripheral drivers for SPI, I2C, UART, QSPI, GPIO, timers, and interrupts based on register maps and datasheets.
- Lead hardware bring-up and debug on new boards and silicon using SWD and JTAG probes, logic analyzers, and oscilloscopes.
- Build host-side automation, test benches, and tooling in Python that drive hardware over USB, program flash, and capture data.
- Maintain continuous integration pipelines to enforce build checks, host-based unit tests, and memory size limits.
- Document bring-up procedures, register-level debug investigations, and architectural decisions.
What you'll need
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or equivalent practical experience.
- Proficiency in C for embedded targets, with working knowledge of ARM Cortex-M microcontrollers.
- Understanding of memory layout, linker scripts, interrupts, and memory/timing budgeting.
- Practical experience with hardware interfaces including SPI, I2C, and UART.
- Hands-on experience with standard bench equipment such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, multimeters, and bench power supplies.
- Proficiency in Python for test automation and tooling, along with version control in Git.
Nice to have
- Experience with FreeRTOS or a comparable real-time operating system.
- Experience with bootloaders, firmware update mechanisms, or flash memory (NOR, QSPI).
- Familiarity with optical modules and management interfaces such as CMIS, QSFP, OSFP, and SFF specifications.
- Exposure to FPGA workflows or the ability to read Verilog.
- Experience taking a new chip or board from first power-on to working.
- GUI development experience with PyQt6 or a similar framework.
- Experience with embedded C++, Linux, and command-line tools.
More semiconductor jobs: Firmware engineer jobs · Sunnyvale jobs
First seen in our index 7 days ago, well below the 56-day median for Embedded Firmware Engineering roles.
Embedded Firmware Engineering · Systems Software
|
Open roles in category
760
|
Median days since first seen
56 d
|
Category median salary (all employers)
$172k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Avicena | All employers we track in this specialty (760 roles · 87 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 1 | 760 |
| Open roles in the wider Software, Firmware & Systems family | 3 | 6558 · 157 employers |
| Median days since first seen | 7 d | 56 d (+49 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | n/a | $172k |
Who's hiring in this category
- Qualcomm · 115 open roles · median 65 d
- NVIDIA · 83 open roles · median 49 d
- AMD · 54 open roles · median 43 d
- Micron Technology · 49 open roles · median 78 d
- NXP Semiconductors · 37 open roles · median 37 d
- Analog Devices · 31 open roles · median 30 d
How we counted: 760 open Embedded Firmware Engineering (Systems Software) roles from 87 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 11 Nov 2026. Specialty figures count only roles carrying this exact specialty label, so an employer's related work in neighbouring specialties is not included there, and is counted in the wider Software, Firmware & Systems family row. Days are counted from when our index first saw each posting, not from the employer's original posting date.