R&D Test Engineer, Photonics

Open role R&D Test Engineer, Photonics Our mission AI is becoming fundamental to how the world works. When it is, the ability to compute, and to manufacture the hardware that computes, should not be concentrated in a few places. Touchdown's mission is to make compute accessible to the whole world and to reindustrialize advanced semiconductor manufacturing in the United States. We co-design everything for next-generation compute: the AI systems people use, the software that serves them, the architectures and chips underneath, and the packaging, test, and manufacturing that make them real. Co-design brings down the complexity and cost of building compute. That is what makes manufacturing in America competitive again, and what puts compute within reach of people and companies everywhere. We build alongside the world's best manufacturing ecosystems, including Taiwan's, and every role here makes one layer better and carries what it learns to the rest. Why this role matters Moving data with light is becoming as important as computing on it. Next-generation systems need photonic and optical components that are tested as rigorously as electronics. Technical scope Optical test methods: insertion loss, polarization effects, responsivity, and link performance; wafer-level and component-level optical probing; fiber and active alignment automation; laser characterization and burn-in; optical reliability; test-time reduction; correlation across instruments and sites. First 90 days
• Take ownership of optical test development.
• Bring up and correlate optical measurements.
• Improve test time and coverage with measured results. What you will own
• Optical test methods and limits.
• Alignment and measurement automation.
• Burn-in and reliability screening. What you bring
• 5+ years in photonics or optical transceiver test.
• Optical test instruments and alignment systems.
• Python test automation.
• Has developed optical test for transceivers, lasers, or photonic integrated circuits.
• Comfortable with optical spectrum analyzers, power meters, BER testers, and alignment stages. Helpful experience
• Mandarin How we work
• AI-native by default. You use coding agents, AI-assisted analysis, and automation every day, and you check their output against measurements before anyone relies on it.
• We work alongside foundries, test houses, OSATs, and research labs, and we build with partners rather than against them.
• Touchdown does not operate a production fab today.
• Do not bring, send, or use confidential information or trade secrets from a current or former employer. We hire for skill and judgment, not for anyone else's process recipes. How the role works
• Full-time.
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Location:
Hsinchu, Taiwan
• Santa Clara, CA.
• Openings: 2–3.
• Taiwan roles are employed through a local employer of record. Mandarin is a strong plus for Taiwan roles; English is required for written work.
• Pay: $150,000–$200,000 base (Santa Clara, CA).
• Ranges are base pay for U.
S. roles and depend on location, experience, and level. Full-time roles also include equity and benefits. Taiwan pay is set to the local market and discussed in the first call.
• Start date and employment details are discussed during the process. Apply for this role → Applications are reviewed against the work described here. We do not use a degree, title, or keyword list as a substitute for evidence.