# Senior Process Engineer - Physical Vapor Deposition

**Company:** [Rigetti Computing](https://hotfix.jobs/companies/rigetti-computing)
**Location:** Fremont, CA
**Role:** Hardware Engineering
**Salary:** $170k – $200k/yr
**Experience:** 5+ years
**Skills:** physical vapor deposition, sputtering, electron-beam evaporation, thermal evaporation, semiconductor fabrication, vacuum systems, thin-film deposition, statistical process control, design of experiments, process development, ellipsometry, atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Python, MATLAB
**Posted:** 2026-07-09

> Owns and advances PVD deposition modules for superconducting quantum processor fabrication, from process development and qualification through production monitoring and troubleshooting. The role requires hands-on wafer-processing experience, vacuum and thin-film expertise, and strong engineering data-analysis skills.

## Job Description

## Responsibilities

### Core Responsibilities
- Own the process health and performance of assigned PVD modules through SPC, process monitoring, and data analysis.
- Develop, optimize, and qualify thin-film deposition processes for superconducting resonators, signal wiring, and interconnect structures, including qualification of new equipment, materials, and process technologies.
- Analyze process, metrology, and electrical characterization data to improve reproducibility and device performance.
- Lead root-cause investigations and implement corrective and preventive actions for process, equipment, and materials-related issues, including issues requiring cross-functional coordination.
- Partner with facilities and equipment engineering to coordinate preventive maintenance, support equipment recovery, and lead process qualification following maintenance or repairs.
- Document process development activities, author and maintain standard operating procedures, and train process technicians on new processes and equipment operation.

### Growth and Stretch Responsibilities
- Contribute to and, with increasing scope, help set the technical roadmap for the process area, including equipment strategy, capability investments, and long-term scalability.
- Mentor and technically review the work of process engineers or technicians as opportunities arise.
- Represent process engineering in cross-functional design and technical reviews, helping drive trade-off decisions across materials, process integration, design, and quantum engineering.

## Requirements
- Master's degree with 4–6 years of relevant industry or research experience, or a PhD with 2+ years of relevant industry, postdoctoral, or research experience, in Materials Science, Physics, Applied Physics, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or a related field.
- Hands-on experience with PVD equipment, including sputtering, e-beam, or thermal evaporation, and semiconductor fabrication processes.
- Direct, sustained experience with 4-inch or 6-inch wafer processing.
- Strong working knowledge of vacuum systems and thin-film deposition processes, including diagnosing process or tool drift.
- Strong understanding of semiconductor fabrication processes and superconducting or semiconductor device physics.
- Experience with process development, experimental design (DOE), and engineering data analysis, including using data to drive process decisions.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, including technical documentation.
- Ability to work effectively in a collaborative, cross-functional engineering environment.
- Comfort operating autonomously in a fast-paced R&D environment with evolving technical priorities.

## Nice-to-Haves
- Experience leading the end-to-end qualification of a new process, tool, or material into production or scaled R&D use.
- Experience mentoring engineers or technicians, or setting technical direction within a process area.
- Experience owning a process module through multiple technology generations or major equipment transitions.
- Track record of publications, patents, or documented internal process-capability improvements.
- Experience with superconducting thin films or device fabrication.
- Experience developing thin-film processes for semiconductor, superconducting, or quantum technologies.
- Hands-on experience with thin-film characterization techniques such as ellipsometry, AFM, SEM, XRR, XRD, or related methods.
- Experience analyzing engineering data using statistical methods and tools such as JMP, Python, MATLAB, or similar software.
- Exposure to quantum computing, cryogenic measurements, or superconducting device technologies.
- Experience working in a startup or R&D-focused engineering environment.

## Compensation
- Annual salary range: **$170,000–$200,000**.

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