(Senior) PIC Design Engineer - Architecture & Fiber Coupling (f/m/d)

Your mission Your profile Why us? The future of AI computing builds on light. Q.ANT is building photonic processing systems that compute with light - delivering a scalable, energy-efficient alternative to transistor-based architectures for next-generation AI and HPC applications. Q.ANT’s photonic integrated circuits are at the heart of this technology. You will drive the design, development, and optimisation of advanced PIC components - with a particular focus on state-of-the-art fiber-to-chip coupling and photonic packaging - driving solutions from initial concept through layout, fabrication, and production-ready integration. As a technical lead for specific PIC components, you will drive innovation across the full photonic integration lifecycle, define design methodologies, and coordinate cross-functional teams from concept to production. Your expertise in fiber-to-chip coupling and packaging will directly distinguish Q.ANT’s photonic solutions and shape the company’s technology roadmap. Location: Stuttgart, Germany Type: Permanent employment, full-time Work mode: Onsite with max. 1 day remote work per week What You Will Do - Drive the development of state-of-the-art fiber-to-chip coupling solutions for industry environments - driving mode matching, loss budget optimisation, and packaging integration from component design through production-ready delivery• Lead the design, prototyping, and validation of specific photonic chip components - from concept through layout, tape-out coordination, fabrication, and packaging - ensuring all deliverables meet performance specifications and schedule targets - Implement photonic computing architectures on chip; drive innovation and new technology development in the PIC domain, proposing novel components and integration strategies that feed directly into Q.ANT’s product and technology roadmap - Coordinate cross-disciplinary engineering projects (design, development, integration, testing) from concept to production - working closely with packaging, test, and foundry teams; collect and consolidate specifications from stakeholders and translate them into circuit definitions - Mentor junior engineers and technicians; provide technical guidance and ensure effective collaboration across all project phases - Present complex technical findings and design decisions to both technical peers and executive-level stakeholders with clarity and precision About us Who we are and what we do Q.ANT is a deep-tech scale-up developing photonic processing solutions that compute natively with light and deliver a scalable alternative to transistor-based systems. The analog co-processors are optimised for complex computations and enable energy-efficient performance for next-generation AI and HPC applications. In collaboration with the Institute for Microelectronics Stuttgart IMS CHIPS, Q.ANT operates its own pilot line for photonic chips, based on the material system Thin-Film Lithium Niobate TFLN. Q.ANT was founded by Michael Förtsch in 2018 and is headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany.