Wafer Fab Technician – Metallization, Dry Etch & Wet Etch - USA - City of Industry, CA, United States
$52,000 - $74,880 USD yearly
Originally posted 23 October 2026 by the employer.
About the role
The Wafer Fab Process Technician runs volume production in support of daily wafer fabrication schedules, while ensuring process stability, recipe control, and yield performance across InP photonic device lines. Hands-on time centers on the metallization module alongside ownership of dry etch and wet etch steps for InP Buried Heterostructure (BH) DFB lasers and BH Gain Chips.
What you'll do
- Operate e-beam evaporation and sputter deposition systems to deposit p- and n-contact metal stacks, while executing lift-off, metal etch, and RTA or furnace ohmic contact alloy processes. - Run ICP/RIE, plasma descum/ash systems, and wet bench processes, including BOE oxide removal and pre-metal surface cleans. - Perform source loading, crucible and target management, chamber pump-down, preventive maintenance tasks, and monitor wafer qualifications on deposition tools. - Conduct in-line metrology inspections including metal thickness, sheet resistance, contact resistance (TLM), adhesion, and defect checks. - Lead root-cause investigations and execute short-loop engineering splits for process excursions across metallization, dry etch, and wet etch modules. - Maintain SPC control charts, control-limit reviews, and Process-of-Record (POR) documentation for metal deposition, lift-off, and contact alloy recipes.
What you'll need
- 5 to 10 years of experience in semiconductor or photonics wafer processing, with direct III-V or InP process experience. - Working knowledge of metallization (e-beam evaporation, sputtering, lift-off, contact alloy), plasma dry etch, wet etch, and in-line fab process steps. - Hands-on proficiency operating deposition, etch, and metrology tools such as profilometers, four-point probes, TLM test structures, and defect inspection microscopes. - Working knowledge of ohmic contact formation on InP and related III-V materials, including surface preparation effects on contact resistance and adhesion. - Ability to work in a cleanroom environment for extended periods around chemicals (acids, solvents), process gases, and precious metals.
Skills: metallization, e-beam evaporation, sputtering, lift-off, InP, dry etch
This role has been open 0 days — well below the 43-day median for Process Engineering roles.
Process Engineering · Deposition Process
|
Open roles in category
68
|
Median days open
43 d
|
Median salary
$158k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Semtech | All employers we track in this specialty (68 roles · 20 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 2 | 68 |
| Open roles in the wider Process, Fab & Equipment family | 22 | 10080 · 106 employers |
| Median days open | 0 d | 43 d (−43 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $158k |
Skills observed across this category: metallization, e-beam evaporation, sputtering, lift-off, InP, dry etch
Who's hiring in this category
- Micron Technology · 18 open roles · median 34 d
- Lam Research · 12 open roles · median 25 d
- ASM International · 11 open roles · median 44 d
- STMicroelectronics · 5 open roles · median 25 d
- Applied Materials · 4 open roles · median 65 d
- Intel Corporation · 2 open roles · median 106 d
How we counted: 68 open Process Engineering (Deposition Process) roles from 20 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.
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