Qualcomm

Qualcomm

Staff Engineer, Hardware Application Engineering

Santa Clara, California, United States of America · Staff+

Sponsorship not specified$143k-$215kDetected 1 day ago
RESTPCB DesignElectrical EngineeringHardware DesignRF EngineeringAPI TestingCommunicationCollaboration

About the role

  • Cross‑Functional Collaboration Work closely with RF, hardware systems, firmware, networking, and customer engineering teams to resolve complex customer issues.

Responsibilities

  • Translate customer requirements into hardware architecture guidance, feature recommendations, and reference design adaptations.
  • WLAN AP & RF Design Expertise Provide hands‑on guidance for WLAN AP design, including Wi‑Fi 6/6E/7 architectures, multi‑band/multi‑radio systems, and coexistence considerations.
  • Lead and review RF tuning, including gain budgets, antenna matching, PA/LNA optimization, thermal impacts, and regulatory margin analysis.
  • Support RF validation using spectrum analyzers, signal generators, vector network analyzers, and Wi‑Fi test systems.
  • Ethernet & Networking Interfaces Support designs involving Ethernet PHYs, switches, GMAC/XGMAC, and multi‑port gateway architectures.
  • Debug and resolve Ethernet bring‑up, link stability, and performance issues in customer designs.
  • Collaborate with firmware, BSP, and systems teams to debug hardware/software interaction issues impacting WLAN or Ethernet performance.
  • Drive alignment across internal teams to close customer gaps and accelerate enablement.
  • Documentation & Knowledge Sharing Create and maintain hardware application notes, design guidelines, bring‑up checklists, and customer training material.
  • Capture field learnings and feed them back into reference designs and future platform improvements.

Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in Electrical/Electronics Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field and 4+ years of Hardware Applications Engineering or Hardware Design experience or related work experience.
  • OR Master's degree in Electrical/Electronics Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field and 3+ years of Hardware Applications Engineering or Hardware Design experience or related work experience.

Nice to have

  • Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field.
  • 5-8+ years of experience in hardware design, hardware applications engineering, or customer engineering.
  • Deep expertise in Wi‑Fi standards (802.11ax / 802.11be) and WLAN system architecture.
  • Experience with Qualcomm WLAN or networking SoC platforms.
  • Strong knowledge of RF test equipment and hardware validation methodologies.
  • Familiarity with regulatory requirements (FCC/ETSI) and pre‑compliance testing.
  • Experience supporting products through high‑volume manufacturing.
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to explain complex hardware topics to diverse audiences.

Compensation

  • Even more importantly, please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Qualcomm.

Benefits

  • We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales-incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus).
  • In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play.
  • Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that Qualcomm has to offer - and you can review more details about our US benefits at this link.

Company info

  • Qualcomm Atheros, Inc.
  • Job Area: Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Hardware Applications Engineering General Summary: As a Staff Hardware Application Engineer, you will lead the customer-facing hardware enablement of Qualcomm's next‑generation WLAN Gateway and Access Point platforms for North American customers.
  • This role sits at the intersection of hardware design, RF/WLAN systems, Ethernet networking, and SoC platforms, and is critical to enabling customers to design, tune, validate, and successfully launch products based on Qualcomm solutions.
  • You will work closely with customers, ODM/OEM partners, and internal hardware, RF, system, firmware, and software teams to translate customer requirements into robust hardware designs and ensure end‑to‑end readiness from schematic review through production launch.
  • Customer Hardware Enablement Act as the primary technical interface for customers during WLAN gateway / AP hardware bring‑up, validation, and commercialization.
  • Support customers through EVT/DVT/PVT phases to ensure on‑time product launch.
  • Board Design & Hardware Reviews Perform schematic and PCB layout reviews for WLAN gateways and APs, with focus on: High‑speed interfaces (PCIe, RGMII/SGMII, USB) Power integrity and sequencing RF layout, isolation, grounding, and antenna routing Identify design risks early and drive corrective actions with customers and ODMs.
  • SoC & Platform-Level Debug Deep understanding of Qualcomm SoC‑based gateway platforms, including hardware blocks, interconnects, and system dependencies.

Equal opportunity

  • Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or any other protected classification.
  • Qualcomm expects its employees to abide by all applicable policies and procedures, including but not limited to security and other requirements regarding protection of Company confidential information and other confidential and/or proprietary information, to the extent those requirements are permissible under applicable law.
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This listing is sourced directly from Qualcomm's careers page and normalized into a canonical job model.