Senior Thermal Mechanical Photonic Designer
Company websitenvidia.com (NVIDIA, opens in new tab)
Base salary $168,000 to $310,500
Employer-published annual base salary, USD. Advertised base range in Santa Clara, CA
You apply on the employer's own site. Six Figure Work does not handle applications.
- LocationSanta Clara, CA
- WorkplaceWorkplace not stated
- Status at last checkSource accepting applications when checked
- Last checked (51 min ago) · observed since
About this job
We are now looking for a Senior 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 5+ years of experience in a related field
3+ 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
168,000 USD – 264,500 USD for Level 4; and 196,000 USD – 310,500 USD for Level 5.
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 ($168,000) is above 50% of the 360 Design roles in California listed on this site. 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 listingSenior Thermal Mechanical Photonic Designer$168,000 to $310,500
L11 System Product Development Engineer$168,000 to $258,750
Senior Software Engineer, Network Visibility Platform - DGX Cloud$168K to $322K
Hardware Validation Procedures and Documentation Lead$168,000 to $258,750
Senior Software Engineer, Platform Engineering$168K to $322K
PhD Research Scientist, Fundamental Generative AI - New College Grad 2026$168,000 to $264,500
AI Engineering Manager - Finance$168K to $322K
Chart as a table
| Role | Published base |
|---|---|
| Senior Thermal Mechanical Photonic Designer (this listing) | $168,000 - $310,500 |
| L11 System Product Development Engineer | $168,000 - $258,750 |
| Senior Software Engineer, Network Visibility Platform - DGX Cloud | $168K - $322K |
| Hardware Validation Procedures and Documentation Lead | $168,000 - $258,750 |
| Senior Software Engineer, Platform Engineering | $168K - $322K |
| PhD Research Scientist, Fundamental Generative AI - New College Grad 2026 | $168,000 - $264,500 |
| AI Engineering Manager - Finance | $168K - $322K |
Observed changes
- First observed on the employer's board
- 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 (Levels 4-5 combined)
168,000 USD – 264,500 USD for Level 4; and 196,000 USD – 310,500 USD for Level 5.
- 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.
