Senior PA Design Engineer - San Jose, CA, United States
$115,600 - $150,500 USD yearly
Originally posted 18 August 2026 by the employer.
About the role
This role involves the design and development of high-efficiency and high-linearity Cellular Power Amplifiers (PAs) and RF Front-End Modules (FEMs) for 5G NR and 6G smartphones. You will manage the entire process from initial PA architecture definition to high-volume manufacturing.
What you'll do
- Design and develop PAs using GaAs HBT technologies to meet 5G NR and 6G requirements, focusing on linearity, modulation bandwidth, power, and efficiency.
- Lead integration of PA dies into multi-chip modules (MCM), optimizing for size, cost, and thermal performance.
- Conduct 3D electromagnetic (EM) simulations using HFSS and circuit-level simulations in ADS.
- Collaborate with filter (SAW/BAW), packaging, and systems engineers to optimize top-level module performance.
- Document and present results to internal and external customers.
What you'll need
- MSEE with at least 3 years of industry experience, or a Ph.D. degree.
- Strong understanding of RF fundamentals, including S-parameters, impedance matching, stability, and linearity.
- Extensive experience in RF circuit design using ADS, HFSS, and Cadence.
- Solid background in RF measurements and characterization.
Skills: PAs, GaAs HBT, RF fundamentals, ADS, HFSS
This role has been open 47 days — below the 51-day median for RF/Wireless Engineering roles.
RF/Wireless Engineering · RF Frontend
|
Open roles in category
265
|
Median days open
51 d
|
Median salary
$162k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | QORVO | All employers we track in this specialty (265 roles · 34 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 46 | 265 |
| Open roles in the wider Analog & Mixed-Signal family | 74 | 1387 · 106 employers |
| Median days open | 35 d | 51 d (−16 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $162k |
Skills observed across this category: PAs, GaAs HBT, RF fundamentals, ADS, HFSS
Who's hiring in this category
- QORVO (this employer) · 46 open roles · median 35 d
- Skyworks · 41 open roles · median 40 d
- Keysight Technologies · 24 open roles · median 174 d
- Qualcomm · 24 open roles · median 102 d
- Apple · 20 open roles · median 19 d
- Analog Devices · 12 open roles · median 57 d
How we counted: 265 open RF/Wireless Engineering (RF Frontend) roles from 34 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 5 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 Analog & Mixed-Signal family row. Figures refresh nightly.