Principal Engineer, System Diagnostics - Santa Clara, CA, United States

Originally posted 15 October 2026 by the employer.

About the role

This role is responsible for designing, developing, and implementing diagnostic software that bridges the gap between hardware and software, ensuring that high-performance switching hardware is defect-free, reliable, and production-ready. Your software will test everything from low-level silicon interfaces to complex system-level routing paths during the prototyping, manufacturing, and deployment phases.

What you'll do

• Design and implement low-level diagnostic software, test suites, and APIs to exercise and validate network switch hardware components.
• Develop test plans to verify ASICs, high-speed SerDes, memory interfaces (DDR/HBM), PCIe buses, power management, and thermal control systems.
• Partner with hardware design and silicon teams during initial board bring-up, debugging early prototype hardware and isolating root-cause issues.
• Deliver robust diagnostic test coverage for integration into factory manufacturing lines to ensure high-quality production standards.
• Build automated testing frameworks and scripts to execute diagnostic software, collect metrics, and analyze failure data.
• Work closely with Hardware Engineering, ASIC Design, Embedded Firmware, and Network OS teams to define diagnostic requirements and hardware-testability (DFT) hooks.

What you'll need

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field and 10-15 years of related professional experience; Master's degree in a related technical field with 5-10 years of experience.
• Proficient in C/C++ for embedded or low-level software development, along with strong scripting skills in Python or Bash for automation.
• Solid understanding of switch architecture, high-speed signal integrity, SerDes, I2C/SPI/MDIO protocols, PCIe, and peripheral management.
• Experience developing in Linux environments, including knowledge of Linux drivers, kernel concepts, and memory mapping.
• Hands-on experience using lab equipment such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and JTAG debuggers to isolate hardware vs. software bugs.

Nice to have

• Experience with networking ASICs or switch silicon from vendors like Broadcom, Marvell, or Intel (Barefoot).
• Familiarity with networking protocols (Ethernet, TCP/IP, Layer 2/3 switching) and optical transceivers.
• Knowledge of U-Boot, Open Network Install Environment (ONIE).
• Exposure to rack-scale management: BMC (OpenBMC), PDU, IPMI, or Redfish.
• Experience with continuous integration (CI/CD) pipelines and automated test infrastructure.
• Proven experience managing test relationships with ODM/JDM or CM partners.

Skills: diagnostic software, low-level software, hardware bring-up, Linux environments, BMC