Senior Applied Scientist – AI/ML Calibration & Optimization - Milpitas, CA, United States
$136,300 - $231,700 USD yearly
Originally posted 23 October 2026 by the employer.
About the role
As a Senior Applied Scientist, you will develop machine learning, statistical modeling, and physics-informed AI algorithms to calibrate and optimize electron-optical semiconductor inspection and metrology systems. You will focus on improving calibration speed, accuracy, repeatability, drift compensation, and tool-to-tool matching across electron sources, optical columns, detectors, and high-voltage systems.
What you'll do
- Redesign calibration and recalibration workflows to improve speed, accuracy, repeatability, robustness, and system productivity. - Develop and validate calibration algorithms for electron sources, electron-optical columns, beam-steering systems, detectors, alignment, focus, high-voltage, and vacuum behavior. - Apply machine learning, statistical modeling, and physics-informed AI to predict calibration outcomes and detect drift, anomalies, and performance excursions using fleet-level data. - Build physics-based and data-driven models, incorporating sensitivity studies, uncertainty estimates, and error-propagation analyses. - Design and execute experiments to evaluate calibration repeatability and correlate model predictions with experimental measurements to refine algorithms. - Partner with electron optics, systems, software, algorithm, manufacturing, and service teams to implement, validate, and qualify calibration solutions for production deployment.
What you'll need
- M.S. with 3+ years of experience, Ph.D. (0+ years), or Bachelor's with 5+ years of experience in Physics, Applied Physics, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, Data Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Optical Engineering, or a related quantitative discipline. - Demonstrated experience developing and validating machine-learning, statistical, or mathematical models for complex physical, scientific, or engineering problems. - Strong foundation in numerical optimization, probability and statistics, linear algebra, numerical methods, regression, system identification, or time-series analysis. - Proficiency in Python and practical experience with frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, JAX, scikit-learn, or SciPy. - Experience working with substantial engineering, experimental, simulation, sensor, telemetry, or operational datasets. - Track record of personally developing or materially improving an algorithm, model, or optimization method beyond applying off-the-shelf models.
Nice to have
- Experience with calibration, system identification, controls, diagnostics, drift compensation, predictive maintenance, or condition monitoring. - Familiarity with electron-optical systems, SEM, charged-particle optics, semiconductor inspection, or metrology equipment. - Familiarity with physics-informed neural networks, neural operators, surrogate models, differentiable simulation, inverse problems, or hybrid physics/data models. - Experience accelerating scientific workloads with GPUs, HPC, or parallel computing. - Experience translating Python or research prototypes into production software, including C++ experience.
This role has been open 0 days — well below the 55-day median for Semiconductor Equipment Engineering roles.
Semiconductor Equipment Engineering · Manufacturing Equipment
|
Open roles in category
3892
|
Median days open
55 d
|
Median salary
$126k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, and who else is hiring
| Metric | KLA Corporation | All employers we track in this specialty (3892 roles · 83 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 288 | 3892 |
| Open roles in the wider Process, Fab & Equipment family | 512 | 10080 · 106 employers |
| Median days open | 65 d | 55 d (+10 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $126k |
Who's hiring in this category
- Applied Materials · 641 open roles · median 53 d
- Lam Research · 573 open roles · median 38 d
- Micron Technology · 285 open roles · median 48 d
- KLA Corporation (this employer) · 274 open roles · median 68 d
- ASML · 183 open roles · median 73 d
- ASM International · 163 open roles · median 86 d
How we counted: 3892 open Semiconductor Equipment Engineering (Manufacturing Equipment) roles from 83 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 23 Oct 2026. Specialty figures count only roles carrying this exact specialty label, so an employer's related work in neighbouring specialties is not included there — it is counted in the wider Process, Fab & Equipment family row. Figures refresh nightly.