Senior Laser Engineer - Milpitas, CA, United States
$111,850 - $186,400 USD yearly
Originally posted 29 September 2026 by the employer.
This role focuses on low-power continuous-wave (CW), single-frequency, tunable diode laser systems.
About the role
This role involves the development, improvement, and lifecycle management of advanced laser systems. The position focuses primarily on low-power continuous-wave (CW), single-frequency, tunable diode laser systems supporting OEM and semiconductor customers, with both free-space and fiber-based configurations.
What you'll do
- Support the design, integration, testing, and qualification of laser products and subsystems.
- Perform system-level analysis (optical, electrical, thermal, mechanical, and software interactions) to improve performance, reliability, and manufacturability.
- Lead structured root-cause investigations for product, manufacturing, and field failures.
- Diagnose complex technical issues and analyze reliability, yield, and performance data.
- Provide direct engineering support to manufacturing and operations teams.
- Investigate customer-reported issues and communicate technical findings to customers and internal stakeholders.
What you'll need
- Bachelor’s degree in Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Photonics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical discipline and 5+ years of industry experience.
- Strong system-level troubleshooting and diagnostic skills.
- Experience with root-cause analysis methodologies.
- Hands-on experience developing, testing, integrating, manufacturing, or supporting advanced laser systems, photonics products, or electro-optical instruments.
- Experience working with advanced laser laboratory equipment and optoelectronic test instrumentation.
Nice to have
- Master’s degree or PhD in Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Photonics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical discipline and 2+ years of industry experience.
- Experience with diode, fiber, solid-state, or tunable laser systems.
- Experience characterizing laser performance, stability, reliability, and manufacturability.
- Experience supporting manufacturing, NPI, and sustaining engineering.
- Familiarity with reliability and quality frameworks (FMEA, DOE, SPC, ISO 9001).
- Experience using engineering automation and modeling tools (e.g., Python, MATLAB, LabVIEW, or Zemax).
Skills: laser systems, electro-optical systems, diode lasers, optics, thermal management
This role has been open 11 days — well below the 51-day median for Semiconductor Equipment Engineering roles.
Semiconductor Equipment Engineering · Optical Laser Systems
|
Open roles in category
42
|
Median days open
51 d
|
Median salary
$161k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | MKS Instruments | All employers we track in this specialty (42 roles · 11 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 6 | 42 |
| Open roles in the wider Process, Fab & Equipment family | 86 | 9739 · 108 employers |
| Median days open | 102 d | 51 d (+51 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $161k |
Skills observed across this category: laser systems, electro-optical systems, diode lasers, optics, thermal management
Who's hiring in this category
- KLA Corporation · 13 open roles · median 121 d
- ASML · 9 open roles · median 7 d
- Applied Materials · 7 open roles · median 21 d
- MKS Instruments (this employer) · 6 open roles · median 102 d
- Aeva Technologies · 1 open role · median 66 d
- Camtek · 1 open role · median 109 d
How we counted: 42 open Semiconductor Equipment Engineering (Optical Laser Systems) roles from 11 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 10 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.