Optical Test Engineer, Principal

Astera Labs (NASDAQ: ALAB) provides rack-scale AI infrastructure through purpose-built connectivity solutions. By collaborating with hyperscalers and ecosystem partners, Astera Labs enables organizations to unlock the full potential of modern AI. Astera Labs’ Intelligent Connectivity Platform integrates CXL®, Ethernet, NVLink, PCIe®, and UALink™ semiconductor-based technologies with the company’s COSMOS software suite to unify diverse components into cohesive, flexible systems that deliver end-to-end scale-up, and scale-out connectivity. The company’s custom connectivity solutions business complements its standards-based portfolio, enabling customers to deploy tailored architectures to meet their unique infrastructure requirements. Discover more at [www.asteralabs.com](http://www.asteralabs.com/). We are seeking a world-class **Senior Staff to Principal Optical Test Engineer** to lead the development and execution of advanced test strategies for **Co-Packaged Optics (CPO)** solutions. This senior role drives optical and electro-optical testing for next-generation high-bandwidth CPO modules and optical engines integrated with ASICs for AI, hyperscale data centers, and high-performance computing. You will architect test methodologies, develop hardware/software platforms, and enable high-volume manufacturing while ensuring world-class performance, reliability, and yield. This is a high-impact technical leadership position at the forefront of silicon photonics and co-packaged optics innovation. **Key Responsibilities** - Lead the definition, development, and qualification of comprehensive test solutions for CPO optical engines, including wafer-level, die-level, package-level, and system-level testing. - Design and implement optical test hardware and automation systems (e.g., active alignment, fiber array attachment, high-speed optical I/O characterization). - Develop test programs and methodologies for key photonic parameters: insertion loss, eye diagrams, BER, PAM4 signaling, optical power, wavelength, thermal performance, and reliability stress testing. - Collaborate closely with Silicon Photonics design, package engineering, product engineering, and manufacturing teams to optimize design-for-test (DFT) and manufacturability. - Drive yield improvement, failure analysis, and root-cause investigations for complex electro-optical failures in CPO assemblies. - Establish correlations between bench/lab validation, ATE production test, and system-level performance. - Mentor junior engineers and provide technical direction on test architecture, equipment selection, and best practices for high-channel-count, high-speed optics. - Support qualification, reliability testing (e.g., HTOL, temperature cycling), and customer audits for CPO products. - Evaluate and integrate new test technologies, instrumentation, and automation frameworks to scale CPO production efficiently. - Contribute to roadmaps for next-generation CPO test capabilities (e.g., higher data rates, multi-wavelength, advanced packaging). **Qualifications and Requirements** - **Education:** MS or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Physics, or a related field. - **Experience:** - 8+ years (Senior Staff) to 12+ years (Principal) of relevant experience in optical/photonic test engineering. - Strong background in **Co-Packaged Optics (CPO)**, silicon photonics, or high-speed optical transceivers (800G/1.6T+). - Proven track record developing optical test solutions for wafer, package, or module-level testing in high-volume environments. - Deep expertise in optical test instrumentation (e.g., optical spectrum analyzers, BER testers, oscilloscopes, tunable lasers, power meters, fiber alignment systems). - Experience with automated test equipment (ATE), Python/LabVIEW/C# test development, and statistical process control (SPC). - Knowledge of PAM4 signaling, signal integrity, mixed-signal testing, and reliability standards for data center optics. **Preferred Skills and…