Pilot Line Process Integration Lead (all genders)
- Silicon Austria Labs GmbH
- Villach
- Fulltime
- Unlimited
Pilot Line PDK & Design Enablement Lead (all genders)
In the position as Staff Research Engineer you are the central technical interface across SAL’s technology platforms and pilot-line activities. You ensure coherent end-to-end process flows, strong documentation and traceability, and effective coordination between R&D teams, pilot-line technical leads, and SAL MicroFab. You also support external requests by translating them into executable technical scopes.
Your future tasks include:
- Cross-platform process integration: maintain an end-to-end overview of process flows and module interfaces (e.g., thin films, lithography, etch, metrology closure) across integrated photonics, MEMS and related technology stacks.
- Baseline flows & readiness: define and maintain reference flows versus development lanes; support readiness reviews and ensure clear release criteria for stable execution.
- Process change control & documentation discipline: ensure recipe/version control, run cards, parameter windows, and structured documentation of decisions and learnings.
- Know-how capture: support structured capture of process know-how and clarify what can be shared externally vs protected, in collaboration with responsible functions.
- Traceability / data backbone: ensure wafer genealogy, run history, recipe versions, and measurement linkage are consistently captured to build a scalable single source of truth.
- Coordination interface: act as the key technical coordination contact with SAL MicroFab to align run readiness, documentation requirements, execution constraints, and release criteria (without owning MicroFab operations).
- Stability & continuous improvement: drive variability reduction and improvement loops (metrology closure, deviation handling, root-cause analysis) and feed improvements back into baseline flows and documentation.
- External request (open access): support business development and pilot-line teams by translating external requests into executable technical scopes (capability check, feasibility, assumptions/risks, measurement package, deliverables) and matching requests to the right platform capability.
Your profile:
- Proven experience (min. 8+ years) in semiconductor process integration and wafer fab execution in an applied R&D / microfabrication environment.
- MSc/PhD in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Materials Science, Microsystems, or comparable.
- Strong understanding of thin-film and microfabrication process flows and interface points (module integration, variability drivers, metrology closure).
- Demonstrated strength in documentation discipline; experience with traceability/MES workflows is a plus.
- Structured, data-driven problem solving (variability/yield thinking, root-cause analysis; SPC/DoE basics appreciated).
- Strong communication and coordination skills across technical teams in a matrix organization; comfortable interfacing with external partners/users.
- Fluent English; German is a plus.
Important Facts about SAL:
- Diverse research activities with many technical challenges.
- State-of-the-art laboratory facilities and equipment.
- Location in the heart of Europe in Austria – relocation support for non-European nationalities.
- Internal and external training opportunities for career development.
- Family & children friendly - actively shaping the compatibility of family and career.
- “Vital4SAL” to promote a healthy workplace (e.g. SAL coaching pool, trainings on mental health, physical activities, healthy snacks, 24/7 accident insurance)
- € 4 per day meal allowance in restaurants or € 2 per working day in supermarkets.
- Public transport initiative (subsidy for the “Klimaticket”)
- Our values: Open door policy, flexibility in working hours, casual dress code, diverse teams, working with people of different nationalities, informal communication, lifelong learning, compatibility of family and career, sustainability, personal growth, and collective advancement.
This position is subject to the Collective Agreement for employees in non-university research (Research CA) starting in occupational group F (F1 salary = EUR 4.868, paid 14 times a year) based on 38,5 hours per week). For this position we offer competitive salaries and additional benefits based on your experience and qualifications, starting with a minimum gross salary of EUR 70.000 (annual, based on an All-in contract and bonus).
About us:
Silicon Austria Labs (SAL) is a top research center for Electronics and Software Based Systems (ESBS). At three locations (Graz, Villach, Linz), SAL is conducting research along the entire ESBS value chain in the areas of sensor systems, power electronics, intelligent wireless systems, microsystems and embedded systems to develop future-oriented solutions for industrial production, health, energy, mobility, safety and more. SAL brings together key players from industry, science and research and thus valuable expertise and know-how and conducts cooperative, application-oriented research along the value chain. Cooperative projects are co-financed by SAL and enable a fast and unbureaucratic project start. SAL is thus shaping the high-tech location Austria and Europe and developing the future.
Innovation is our top priority and so are our employees. We are a family-friendly company and support the compatibility of work and family as much as possible. That is why we have been awarded the Work and Family Certificate until 2026. But we are constantly working on new measures to offer our employees an environment where they feel good, healthy and motivated.
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