System Design Engineer
KLA · San Francisco Bay Area
📍 Milpitas, CAvia workday
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Company Overview
KLA is a global leader in diversified electronics for the semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem. Virtually every electronic device in the world is produced using our technologies. No laptop, smartphone, wearable device, voice-controlled gadget, flexible screen, VR device or smart car would have made it into your hands without us. KLA invents systems and solutions for the manufacturing of wafers and reticles, integrated circuits, packaging, printed circuit boards and flat panel displays. The innovative ideas and devices that are advancing humanity all begin with inspiration, research and development. KLA focuses more than average on innovation and we invest 15% of sales back into R&D. Our expert teams of physicists, engineers, data scientists and problem-solvers work together with the world’s leading technology providers to accelerate the delivery of tomorrow’s electronic devices. Life here is exciting and our teams thrive on tackling really hard problems. There is never a dull moment with us.
Group/Division
The SensArray division is the world leading provider of in situ processing measurement and control solutions for the semiconductor industry. The company provides measurement and control solutions to both semiconductor fabs and mask shops to ensure that yields are consistently high thus enabling cost-effective manufacturing SensArray business unit is dedicate to support customer R&D phase as well as HVM with in-situ thermal process control. SensArray business unit enable APC (Automated Process Control) to improve process optimization and yield improvement.
Job Description/Preferred Qualifications
Primary Responsibilities Define and own system architecture, requirements, and interface definitions across subsystems
Lead product transition from development to manufacturing
Drive DFM / DFA / DFx (Design for Manufacturability, Assembly, Test, Cost)
Establish and maintain system-level specifications, error budgets, and performance trade-offs
Lead cross-functional design reviews and ensure alignment across electrical, mechanical, firmware, and software domains
Drive Design for Excellence (DFx), including manufacturability, assembly, testability, cost, reliability, and serviceability
Influence subsystem designs to optimize performance, yield, quality, and cost of ownership
Identify technical risks and develop mitigation strategies throughout the product lifecycle
Lead system-level integration, validation, and verification planning and execution
Resolve system-level issues across engineering, manufacturing, and field environments
Collaborate with product marketing and engineering leadership to align system requirements with customer and roadmap needs
Provide technical leadership for next-generation technologies (N+1, N+2 roadmap planning)
Ensure documentation readiness: BOMs, routings, work instructions
New Product Introduction (NPI) Ownership Own electrical and system-level aspects of NPI from prototype through production release
Lead product transition from development to manufacturing, ensuring build readiness (processes, tools, fixtures, test coverage)
Coordinate prototype, pilot, qualification builds, and early production ramp
Drive electrical bring-up, debug, system integration, and issue resolution
Define manufacturing test strategies, coverage, and validation approaches
Identify and mitigate risks related to yield, reliability, and cycle time
Partner with manufacturing engineering to drive yield improvement and ramp readiness
Support supplier / contract manufacturer engagement and sourcing decisions
Ensure full documentation readiness (BOMs, routings, work instructions, test procedures)
Drive corrective actions and incorporate lessons learned into future programs
Support customer demos, first-article builds, and ramp plans
Key Duties Develop and evaluate next-generation system concepts and architectures
Perform modeling and simulation (including physical and thermal principles where applicable) to derive system requirements
Conduct trade-off analysis to optimize system performance versus cost and schedule
Lead subsystem partitioning aligned to business and technical objectives
Ensure comprehensive test, validation, and verification plans are implemented
Drive root cause analysis and resolution of complex system-level issues
Lead small cross-functional teams on design issues, supplier escalations, and manufacturing challenges
Support prototype testing, data analysis, and performance validation
Develop diagnostic strategies for system troubleshooting and reliability improvement
Mentor and develop junior system engineers and influence engineering best practices
Preferred Qualifications Strong background in modeling and simulation of complex systems (electrical, optical, thermal, or multi-physics)
Experience developing computational models to analyze system performance under varying conditions
Knowledge of optical, electromechanical, imaging, thermal, or motion control systems
Familiarity with scripting languages (e.g., Python) for modeling or data analysis
Exposure to AI - Skill based/Agent based AI to drive faster work flows.
Demonstrated expertise in system-level diagnostics and troubleshooting
Strong analytical problem-solving skills across complex, multi-disciplinary systems
Ability to communicate effectively across all organizational levels and global teams
Minimum Qualifications
Doctorate (Academic) Degree and 0 years related work experience; Master's Level Degree and related work experience of 3 years; Bachelor's Level Degree and related work experience of 5 years
Minimum Qualifications Technical degree in Electrical Engineering, Material Engineering, Physics, Systems Engineering
5–10 years of experience in electrical hardware development and productization
Proven experience with NPI, pilot builds, and manufacturing ramp-up
Demonstrated success taking hardware designs from concept through manufacturi
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