Staff Failure Analysis and Test Engineer

Reporting to the Director of Hardware Engineering, the Failure Analysis and Test Engineer is a high impact role that will work closely with AEye’s internal engineering, operations, and customer support teams in an ongoing effort to improve product quality, cost, and customer experience. This is a hands-on individual contributor role with duties focused on failure analysis and root cause activities. The individual will be testing, taking data, analyzing lidar components and the system as a whole for thermal, electrical and mechanical robustness. This role requires the operation of internal test equipment, design and setup of testing procedures and apparatus if necessary, and interfacing with external test facilities and vendors. You will also work with other Engineering teams to quickly mitigate and implement countermeasures of field issues to improve quality, reliability and durability of products.

Tasks, Duties & Responsibilities:

• Work closely with engineering teams to perform failure analysis of MEMS devices, MEMS processes and MEMS packaging and improve the manufacturing yield of cutting-edge MEMS-based devices
• Support product qualifications for new product development. Define and manage design and process validations of subassembly and final assembly of LiDAR products
• Provide consultation for internal teams, as well as guidance for failure analysis activities performed at suppliers. Serve as the in-house subject matter expert and ensure a high bar for root cause analysis is met.
• Communicate technical investigation results to key technical stakeholders from Quality, Engineering, and Operations
• Maintain a failure analysis lab and Generate failure analysis reports.
• Manage activities related to outsourced testing work with 3rd party testing facilities and vendors
• Perform failure analysis on customer returns and internal rejects for Lidar products.
• Evaluate electrical, thermal, and mechanical characteristics of systems, sub-systems, and components to determine root cause of failure.
• Analyze failures and recommend corrective action to prevent reoccurrence of problems.
• Interact with device and product/process development engineers to determine relationship of material properties and electrical performance
• Evaluate and define use of analytical equipment related to failure analysis for both production and development.
• Troubleshooting from system level to component level.
• Interfacing with a cross functional team e.g. design (SW, Firmware, HW), process, product, test, and reliability engineering to find root cause and solve problems.
• Occasionally provide feedback and clarify issues with customers.
• On-site job required (local and minimum 3 days in office)

Essential Skills & Experience Requirements (required):

• The ideal candidate will have an engineering MS degree or equivalent applicable work experience.
• BSc and longer work experience (5+years) is accepted.
• Good knowledge of mechanical, electrical, device physics, and MEMs
• Experience and good understanding of optical/photonics systems.
• Experience from Quality/reliability related work assignments.
• Well versed with the various systems, tools, and procedures (e.g. 8D) used in failure analysis.
• Versed in programming languages (e.g. C++, Matlab, Python) for automation programming
• Proficient in many applications used for database management and reporting.
• Experience with PLM (product lifecycle management) software and review of quality documents

Preferred Skills & Experience (useful):

• Experience with automotive MEMs sensors
• Ability to multi-task and meet deadlines
• Good communication and interpersonal skills
• Skilled in communication, problem solving, and applying experience and expertise in an innovative manner
• Able to lead, or work, in a cross functional team while contributing with expertise and suggestions for quick execution of projects under time pressure

Annual Base Salary - 140K-168K