Staff Process Engineer – Thin Film & Metal Deposition

At Nokia Optical Networks , advanced photonic technologies become scalable products powering the world's communication infrastructure. Our team develops and manufactures cutting-edge Indium Phosphide (InP) Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) that enable coherent optics, high-speed transceivers, tunable lasers, optical amplifiers, and next-generation networking solutions.

As a Staff Process Engineer – Thin Film & Metal Deposition , you will lead the development, optimization, qualification, and sustainment of deposition processes critical to advanced photonic device manufacturing. You will work hands-on with deposition equipment, chamber hardware, materials, and metrology systems while collaborating with device, integration, lithography, etch, reliability, and manufacturing teams to develop robust, manufacturable process solutions.

The successful candidate will demonstrate strong technical leadership, a high degree of ownership, enthusiasm for manufacturing excellence, and the ability to provide fast, effective support for a 24x7 production operation.

- M.S. or Ph.D. in Materials Science, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Physics, Chemistry, or a related technical discipline.
- B.S. degree with 5+ years of semiconductor, photonics, or advanced manufacturing experience will also be considered.
- Strong experience in thin film deposition, metallization, and related semiconductor fabrication processes.
- Experience with semiconductor process development, integration, yield improvement, and production support.
- Working knowledge of vacuum systems, deposition equipment, process control methodologies, and materials characterization techniques.
- Demonstrated experience using DOE, SPC, JMP, statistical analysis, and data-driven problem solving.
- Strong ownership mindset with demonstrated ability to drive projects independently and deliver measurable business impact.
- Excellent troubleshooting and root-cause analysis skills.
- Ability to prioritize effectively and respond quickly to manufacturing challenges.
- Strong communication and collaboration skills in cross-functional technical environments.
- Familiarity with AI-enabled engineering tools and modern data analytics methods.

Preferred Qualifications

- Hands-on experience with PECVD, PVD sputtering, e-beam evaporation, thermal evaporation, electroplating, ALD, or related deposition technologies.
- Experience with InP, GaAs, silicon photonics, III-V semiconductors, and optical device manufacturing.
- Understanding of optical device requirements including film stress control, refractive index control, optical loss reduction, adhesion, and long-term reliability.
- Experience developing Au-based metallization systems for photonic and optoelectronic devices.
- Familiarity with semiconductor characterization techniques including ellipsometry, profilometry, four-point probe, SEM, AFM, XRF, XRD, and film stress measurements.
- Experience with new equipment acceptance, qualification, process transfer, and factory ramp activities.
- Experience supporting high-volume manufacturing environments.
- Experience collaborating with equipment suppliers and technology partners on joint development activities.
- Passion for manufacturing excellence and continuous improvement.
- Proven success balancing long-term technology development objectives with urgent production support requirements.