Senior/Mechanical Engineer (R&D)

To make electronics, you need chips, wafers, transistors, reticles, and... To make these, you must see, test and manufacture them at scale—faster and better than ever before. That's where KLA comes in. Whether you're early in your career or an experienced professional, you'll solve complex challenges, work alongside brilliant minds and help shape the future of technology.

Group/Division

The Semiconductor Products and Customers (Semi PC) business unit designs, builds and sells KLA’s product portfolio to help chip manufacturers meet high-quality standards for technologies like AI, data centers, automotive and electronic devices. Our inspection, metrology, and analytics systems detect and monitor defects across logic and memory chips, specialty semiconductors, wafers, reticles, advanced packaging, process equipment and materials. We also develop technologies for specialty processes, IC substrates, and PCB manufacturing, including etch and deposition, component inspection, and imaging and analytics. The Surfscan® division develops unpatterned wafer inspection systems that detect nanoscale particles and surface defects early in semiconductor manufacturing. Its systems monitor wafer quality across a wide range of applications, enabling faster issue identification and improved process control.

What You'll Do

In this role, you will play a key part in advancing business priorities by delivering high-impact work across your area of expertise.

Responsibilities:

Perform mechanical design of precision components, subsystem/system to support the development of the next generation semiconductor metrology equipment.

Own and drive the mechanical design process:

• Gather and uncover technical requirements and translate them into subsystem specifications.
• Conduct preliminary feasibility studies through engineering first principles and/or experiments.
• Propose and complete the design from conceptual design, detailed design to detailed drawings.
• Conduct analysis and simulations, including structural, thermal, vibration/modal Finite Element Analyses (FEAs).
• Participate and lead design reviews to obtain a peer-oriented design assessment.

Plan and execute design verification/validation:

• Fit/form test on sub-assembly/system, which includes hands-on work in the cleanroom building/assembling the first few mechanical assemblies.
• Perform risk analysis, develop test plans with well defined test criteria, and execute verification testing of subsystems and systems.

Supplier management:

• Ensure all design requirements are appropriately specified and parts quality meets specifications with inspection on incoming components.
• Collaborations for customized solutions when required.
• Manufacturing process transfer and qualification.

Cross collaboration:

• Present technical data effectively to diverse audiences in design reviews, status updates, and issues.
• Collaborate with multi-functional engineering teams, including electrical engineers, software engineers, systems engineers, and manufacturing/service engineers, to ensure seamless integration and testing at both subsystem and system levels.
• Develop and release comprehensive documentation of designs, such as assembly and test procedures. Provide training on the new design/procedure and transfer to manufacturing.

Tool maintenance and troubleshooting:

• Apply standard problem-solving methods to identify root causes of sub-system and system test failures.
• Collaborate with manufacturing team during product ramp-up to support and troubleshoot product issues.

Requirements:

• In-depth understanding of mechanical engineering fundamentals, encompassing design principles, materials selection, Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T), tolerance stack-up analysis and error budgeting.
• Strong mechanical engineering fundamentals, including design principles, machine elements, materials, fabrication methods.
• Familiar with mechanical manufacturing processes including machining, sheet metal fabrication, welding, etc.
• Proficient in 3D solid modeling using CAD, preferably ProE/Creo.
• Basic knowledge in simulation software (eg. Solidworks, Creo, ANSYS, etc), capable of structural, vibration, thermal and fluid simulation. Able to do first order estimation using mathematics.

Desired attributes:

• Demonstrate perseverance and drive to be better in solving complex problems.
• Excellent team player and contribute to team effort to accomplish overall objectives as needed.
• Be flexible and adaptive to adjust project focus based on priority changes.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, capable of growing in a collaborative, dynamic environment.
  

Minimum Qualifications

Doctorate (Academic) Degree and 0 years related work experience; Master's Level Degree and related work experience of 3 years; Bachelor's Level Degree and related work experience of 5 years

About KLA

We provide advanced inspection tools, metrology systems, process solutions, and computational analytics that make electronics possible, tackling complex challenges. From electron and photon optics to machine learning and data analytics, we seek perfection at the most fundamental level of matter in the universe. If you want to make electronics that push industries forward and make the world a better place, join us.

Use of AI Statement 

At KLA, our interviews seek to understand your individual skills, problem-solving approach and authentic thinking. To ensure a fair and consistent evaluation, the use of AI, recording tools or other technologies to generate, suggest or provide responses during interviews—whether virtual or in person—is not permitted unless explicitly approved in advance as part of a reasonable accommodation or invited by the interviewer. Use of these tools may interfere with our ability to evaluate your individual qualifications and affect your candidacy. KLA is committed to advancing innovation through responsible AI, and we value candidates who share this mindset.

We offer a competitive, family friendly total rewards package. We design our programs to reflect our commitment to an inclusive environment, while ensuring we provide benefits that meet the diverse needs of our employees.

KLA is proud to be an equal opportunity employer.