Six Figure Work

Principal Thermal Mechanical Photonic Designer

NVIDIA

Company websitenvidia.com (NVIDIA, opens in new tab)

Base salary $232K  to $368K

Employer-published annual base salary, USD. Advertised base range in Santa Clara, CA

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  • LocationSanta Clara, CA
  • WorkplaceWorkplace not stated
  • Status at last checkSource accepting applications when checked
  • Last checked (1 h ago) · observed since

About this job

We are now looking for a Principal Thermal Mechanical Photonic Designer. We are part of the global circuits team at NVIDIA that craft the state-of-the-art GPUs for all applications such as supercomputers, gaming consoles and self-driving cars. Come join us in our mission to Engineer the next generation of outstanding products. Teams are dedicated to the architecture and design of CMOS and Silicon-Photonics high-speed chip interfaces (NVLink, IEEE, PCIE, USB, OIF) and other sophisticated photonic functions. Strong hands-on lab experience with silicon evaluation, debugging, characterization, and bring up.

What you will be doing:

  • Work on Thermal and Structural design of Silicon Photonic designs

  • Run stress simulation in optical components and fiber alignment and propose improved design of optical components.

  • Set up experimental methodology for thermal validation and laser performance under different stress conditions.

  • Modeling Si die-package thermo-mechanical interactions

  • Solder joint fatigue and creep modeling

  • Support the optical engineering and system engineering leads with the opto-mechanical system design.

  • Die-package thermo-mechanical interactions in electronic packages for predicting failures during various assembly and reliability tests to recommend design, process or material changes.

  • Hygroscopic stresses in electronic packages due to moisture diffusion.

  • Crack propagation and interfacial delamination.

  • Multifaceted simulation of wire-bonding and wire fusing process

  • Thermal characterization of electronic packages (crafting thermal specification datasheets based on FE and experiments according to JEDEC standards)

  • Solder joint fatigue and creep modeling

What we need to see:

  • PhD in Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a similar discipline (or equivalent experience) with 15+ years of experience in a related field

  • 8+ years of experience in the development of silicon photonics ICs from concept to high-volume manufacturing

  • Experience in product development of optics or photonic systems

  • Experience in applied research on Silicon Photonic ICs and Systems

  • Hands-on experience with Silicon Photonics products

  • Proficient in Ansys tools

  • Background with design tools and fixtures to aid in alignment, fabrication, gluing, and assembly of lasers, interferometers, and optical components

  • Experience working, communicating, and collaborating in a cross-functional team environment

  • Experience defining system performance and component specifications

  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills

  • Self-motivated and self-directed individual, with little supervision vital

Your base salary will be determined based on your location, experience, and other objective job-related factors. The expected base salary range for this position is 232,000 USD – 368,000 USD.

You will also be eligible for equity and benefits.

Applications for this job will be accepted at least until November 3, 2026.

This posting is for an existing vacancy. 

NVIDIA uses AI tools in its recruiting processes.

NVIDIA is committed to fostering an inclusive work environment and proud to be an equal opportunity employer. As we highly value diversity in our current and future employees, we do not discriminate (including in our hiring and promotion practices) on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status or any other characteristic protected by law.

Source: NVIDIA on Workday · View original posting (opens in new tab)

Pay in context

This role's base floor ($232,000) is above 89% of the 360 Design roles in California listed on this site; 2 others list the same floor. Their median floor is $167,250; the middle half runs from $141,000 to $195,125.

Only jobs on this site count, and each one publishes a base salary of $100,000 or more, so this compares six-figure jobs with each other, not with the whole market. Computed Nov 8, 2026.

This range next to 6 other live NVIDIA roles with the nearest advertised base floor
Chart as a table
This range next to 6 other live NVIDIA roles with the nearest advertised base floor
RolePublished base
Principal Thermal Mechanical Photonic Designer (this listing)$232K - $368K
Senior Manager, ASIC Chip Engineering$232K - $368K
Principal Chip Lead, Silicon Co-Design Group$232K - $368K
Principal System Power Management and Performance Architect$232K - $368K
Senior Manager, Post-Silicon Bring-Up$232K - $368K
Director, Global Workplace Design$232,000 - $356,500
Principal EDA R&D Engineer$232K - $368K

Same $100K to $400K scale as every card. All NVIDIA roles · How to read the bar

Observed changes

  1. First observed on the employer's board
  2. Began meeting the published-salary criteria
Observed since
Employer-stated posting date
2026-10-30
Where this pay comes from

Location as the employer wrote it: US, CA, Santa Clara

base salary will be determined based on your location, experience, and other objective job-related factors. The expected base salary range for this position is 232,000 USD – 368,000 USD.

Method
Employer text, read with fixed rules and re-verified
Checked
Rule set
us-base-v2

The pay passage appears in the employer's own job text. Fixed, deterministic rules located it, and the passage below was checked against the stored copy of the posting.

What we verified

  • The pay figures come from the employer's own listing, quoted exactly above.
  • The pay is an annual base salary in US dollars with a minimum of at least $100,000.
  • The role was publicly listed on the employer's job board when last checked.

We do not verify what the employer will actually offer, whether the employer is still recruiting for the role, or anything beyond what the employer published. Full methodology.

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