Job Description

Senior High-Speed Digital Hardware Engineer | Design the Circuits That Power Autonomous Flight

Senior High-Speed Digital Hardware Engineer | Design the Circuits That Power Autonomous Flight

3 days ago Be among the first 25 applicants

Direct message the job poster from SiFly

Build the Hardware Foundation for the Next Aviation Revolution

We're creating autonomous drones that fly farther than helicopters and cost 98% less to operate. While our software team builds the brains, we need a hardware engineer to design the nervous systemhigh-speed digital boards that process gigabits of sensor data in real-time.

Why SiFly

SiFly's drones arent prototypes in a labthey're production systems helping farmers monitor thousands of acres and enabling first responders to save lives. Our hardware must handle 4K video streams, multispectral imaging, and flight control data simultaneously while operating in extreme environmentsfrom Arizona deserts at 50C to Scandinavian winters at -40C. We need a Senior High-Speed Digital Hardware Engineer to design boards that are as reliable as they are powerful.

The Impact You'll Own

Design the digital backbone of autonomous aviation systems where every nanosecond matters and thermal margins determine mission success.

• Architect high-speed systems - Design PCBs handling PCIe Gen4, 10G Ethernet, and DDR5 simultaneously.
• Master signal integrity - Ensure clean signals at the edge of physics.
• Drive thermal excellence - Keep high-power processors cool at extreme temperatures.
• Enable field reliability - Design for vibration, EMI, and -40C to +50C operation.

Qualifications

Required:

• BS in Electrical Engineering with 10+ years of board design experience
• Deep expertise in high-speed protocols: PCIe, CSI, USB 3.x/4.x, SATA, 10G+ Ethernet
• DDR3/4/5 memory interface design with timing closure experience
• Signal integrity mastery: simulation tools, termination techniques, stackup design
• EMI/EMC compliance design and mitigation strategies
• Advanced PCB design: impedance control, differential routing, length matching
• Hardware validation skills: oscilloscopes, TDR, VNA, SERDES debugging

Design Tools & Methodologies:

• Expert-level PCB layout tools for high-speed routing
• Comprehensive PCB design including: High copper weight designs for power density, Fine pitch QFNs/BGAs placement and fanout, DFM optimization: POFVs, copper finishes, material selection.
• Stackup design for controlled impedance
• Signal integrity simulation and analysis tools

Preferred Skills

• Harsh environment design: automotive/industrial standards, thermal management
• Optical interfaces: SFP+, QSFP, high-speed backplanes
• Startup experience and comfort with rapid iteration
• Mentorship experience or technical leadership background
• Version control systems and collaborative design workflows
• Industry standards knowledge: JEDEC, PCI-SIG, MIPI Alliance

How We Work

• Location: Santa Clara, CA headquarters. This is an on-site role with access to our hardware labs and testing facilities.
• Travel: Occasional field deployments to test in real conditions, supplier visits for critical component selection.
• Culture: Small team of hardware veterans from Apple, Mimosa, Polycom, Boeing. We value elegant design, rigorous testing, and shipping products that work.

The Reality Check

This isnt designing another IoT gadget. Your boards must operate flawlessly for 8-hour missions covering 200+ kilometers, processing continuous sensor data without a single dropped frame.

Youll debug signal integrity issues at midnight, redesign for supply chain realities, and balance elegance with shipping deadlines.

But youll also design hardware that enables a new industry. When autonomous drones become as common as delivery trucks, the boards you design will be the foundation that made it possible.

Ready to Design the Future?

If youre ready to trade comfortable consumer electronics for mission-critical systems, where your layouts enable hours of autonomous flight and your thermal solutions determine mission rangethis is your moment.

Apply via LinkedIn or email careers@sifly.co with your portfolio and LinkedIn profile.

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Industries

  Computers and Electronics Manufacturing and Aviation and Aerospace Component Manufacturing

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