About the Role

A growing engineering team in Santa Clara is seeking a Post Silicon Validation Engineer who is passionate about hardware systems and silicon validation. This role is ideal for engineers who enjoy working close to the hardware layer and solving complex platform challenges during the early lifecycle of silicon products.

Post silicon validation plays a critical role in modern semiconductor development. Once silicon returns from fabrication, engineers must validate the design in real world environments to ensure reliability, stability and performance. This process involves debugging hardware platforms, validating high speed interfaces and performing system level testing across multiple components.

The engineer in this role will work in a hands on lab environment supporting board bring up, hardware troubleshooting and validation of IO interfaces such as PCIe, USB, HDMI and I2C or SPI. This position requires strong problem solving skills and the ability to work across hardware, firmware and operating system layers.

Candidates who enjoy investigating complex issues, analyzing system behavior and collaborating with hardware engineers will find this role both challenging and rewarding.

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Key Responsibilities of the Post Silicon Validation Engineer

Board Bring Up and Platform Initialization

Engineers will support board bring up activities for prototype hardware platforms. This includes assembling system components, configuring the motherboard and validating that the platform boots correctly.

Typical tasks include connecting power supply units, DRAM modules, PCIe devices, displays and other peripherals to x86 motherboards. Engineers must verify that the platform initializes correctly and that system components communicate as expected.

Hardware Debugging and Troubleshooting

Hardware troubleshooting is a major part of this role. Engineers must diagnose issues that occur during the validation process.

Common debugging activities include analyzing signal behavior, checking power rails and investigating communication failures between devices. Engineers often use hardware schematics and layout files to identify potential root causes.

Interface Validation and Testing

Modern computing platforms rely on multiple high speed interfaces. Engineers will validate IO interfaces such as PCIe, USB, HDMI and I2C or SPI.

Validation includes running test plans, verifying data transfer stability and ensuring compatibility between platform components. Engineers must analyze results and document issues discovered during testing.

Lab Measurements and Instrumentation

The role requires hands on experience with electrical measurement tools in a hardware validation lab.

Engineers regularly use oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, data acquisition devices, power supplies and multimeters to measure signal behavior and power consumption. Understanding how to interpret measurement results is essential.

Silicon Characterization and PVT Testing

Post silicon validation also includes characterization of silicon behavior under different environmental conditions.

Engineers participate in PVT characterization which evaluates performance across process variations, voltage levels and temperature ranges. This helps ensure the silicon design meets reliability standards.

Collaboration with Engineering Teams

The validation engineer works closely with hardware engineers, firmware developers and system architects. When issues arise, engineers collaborate with different teams to identify root causes and implement fixes.

Clear communication and documentation are important because validation results often guide design improvements.

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Required Skills and Qualifications

Educational Background

A Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a related discipline is typically required. Candidates with strong coursework in electronics, embedded systems or computer architecture are well suited for this role.

Hardware Validation Knowledge

Candidates should understand board bring up processes, hardware troubleshooting and validation testing in a lab environment.

Familiarity with electrical measurement equipment such as oscilloscopes and logic analyzers is essential.

Interface and Protocol Knowledge

Engineers should have working knowledge of interfaces such as PCIe, USB, HDMI, I2C or SPI. Understanding how these interfaces operate and how to debug communication issues is important.

Hardware Schematics and Layout Tools

The ability to read hardware schematics and analyze board layouts is required. Experience using tools such as Cadence Allegro or similar PCB layout tools is helpful.

Operating System and Scripting Basics

Basic Linux command line knowledge is useful for running tests and interacting with validation tools. Some exposure to scripting using Python or Bash can also help automate validation tasks.

Communication and Documentation

Strong communication skills are essential for documenting validation results and collaborating with engineering teams. Engineers must also prepare reports that describe issues and testing outcomes.

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Work Environment

The role is based in Santa Clara and involves working in a hardware validation lab. Engineers spend significant time interacting with physical hardware systems, measurement tools and testing platforms.

This environment is ideal for professionals who enjoy hands on engineering work and problem solving at the system level.

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Career Growth Opportunities

Post silicon validation engineers often develop a deep understanding of hardware platforms and system architecture. This experience can lead to advanced roles in hardware architecture, system engineering or platform development.

Many engineers in this field also transition into performance engineering, silicon design verification or platform architecture roles.

Professionals who build expertise in validation tools, debugging techniques and hardware analysis become valuable contributors to semiconductor product development.

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Ready to Apply?

If you enjoy working at the intersection of hardware systems and silicon validation, this opportunity may be a great next step in your engineering career.

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FAQs

1. What does a Post Silicon Validation Engineer do?

A Post Silicon Validation Engineer verifies that newly manufactured silicon operates correctly on real hardware platforms.

2. What is board bring up in hardware engineering?

Board bring up refers to the initial process of powering and validating a prototype hardware board to confirm that the system functions correctly.

3. What tools do validation engineers typically use?

Common tools include oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, data acquisition systems, multimeters and power supplies.

4. What interfaces should candidates understand?

Knowledge of PCIe, USB, HDMI and I2C or SPI is commonly required.

5. Is scripting required for this role?

Basic scripting using Bash or Python is helpful for running tests or automating validation tasks.

6. Is this role more hardware focused or software focused?

The role is primarily hardware focused but includes interaction with firmware and operating systems.

7. What industries hire Post Silicon Validation Engineers?

Semiconductor companies, processor manufacturers and hardware technology firms commonly hire validation engineers.

8. What experience level is typical for this role?

Many roles require one to three years of relevant hardware validation experience.

9. What is silicon characterization?

Silicon characterization involves testing chip performance across voltage, temperature and process variations.

10. Is experience with Linux important?

Yes, many validation tools and test scripts run in Linux environments.

11. What does PVT testing mean?

PVT stands for process, voltage and temperature testing which evaluates chip stability under different conditions.

12. Do validation engineers work closely with hardware designers?

Yes, validation engineers frequently collaborate with hardware and firmware teams.

13. Is this job mostly lab based?

Yes, most validation work happens in hardware labs using specialized equipment.

14. What skills make someone successful in this role?

Strong debugging ability, hardware knowledge and analytical thinking are key skills.

15. Can this role lead to advanced engineering positions?

Yes, experience in silicon validation can lead to roles in architecture, system engineering or hardware design.