--- title: 'Staff Electrical Engineer – FPGA / MPSoC Systems & Digital Signal Processing at SirenOpt' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/staff-electrical-engineer-fpga-mpsoc-systems-digital-signal-processing-sirenopt-aq4y8qsa7g07' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-09-06' --- # Staff Electrical Engineer – FPGA / MPSoC Systems & Digital Signal Processing at SirenOpt - **Company:** SirenOpt - **Location:** San Leandro California, United States - **Compensation:** $160k–$240k - **Posted:** 2026-05-28 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-06 - **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/sirenopt/jobs/4264342009 ## Job description ## About SirenOpt SirenOpt helps manufacturers make better, safer, and more reliable micro- and nano-materials. These materials are the building blocks of critical sectors of the global economy such as batteries, computer chips, aircraft components, and power systems. But, surging material demand and growing complexity are pushing production to unprecedented scales and speeds, leaving manufacturers effectively flying blind. Small, undetected variations during production lead to wastage, lower performance, higher costs, and safety risks. SirenOpt is changing this. Our manufacturing intelligence platform scans materials, revealing critical internal information without damaging them. Using a novel combination of cold atmospheric plasma, physics-informed machine learning, and predictive analytics, SirenOpt creates unique, real-time fingerprints that capture material signals no other method can access. These insights give manufacturers unprecedented visibility into how materials behave as they are made. We turn hidden data into actionable intelligence to help manufacturers reduce variability and thus increase yield and performance. The technology can be deployed as a standalone tool or integrated directly into factory production lines. SirenOpt is currently deploying early versions of its platform with some of the largest industrial manufacturers in the world across North America, Europe, and Asia. Our first commercial product will be released in 2026. ## Role Overview SirenOpt is looking for a Staff Electrical Engineer – FPGA / MPSoC & Digital Signal Processing Systems to lead the architecture, design, implementation, and validation of high-performance programmable logic, embedded processing, and FPGA-based digital signal processing systems powering our next-generation metrology platform. This is a hands-on, high-impact role for someone who enjoys working close to the technology, solving hard problems quickly, and helping shape products in an early-stage startup environment. This role is ideal for an engineer who is energized by deep tech, thrives in cross-functional environments, and is motivated by the opportunity to build something genuinely new. You will work closely with a small, highly capable team to turn advanced sensing, digital signal processing, and control concepts into robust, high-performance, field-ready systems. ## What You’ll Do - Lead the architecture, design, implementation, and validation of FPGA, MPSoC, and FPGA-based digital signal processing systems for SirenOpt’s metrology platform. - Develop designs from concept through architecture definition, RTL development, modeling, simulation, verification, testbench development, bench testing, and system bring-up. - Build and maintain robust simulation and verification environments to validate functionality, timing, performance, and reliability at both block and system levels. - Design and implement FPGA-based digital signal processing pipelines for real-time sensing and metrology applications, including FIR filters, synchronization pipelines, control loops, and low-latency data paths. - Implement, evaluate, and refine signal-processing and control algorithms such as PID, ADPLL, filtering, and signal-conditioning methods for high-performance measurement systems. - Use MATLAB and Python for algorithm development, modeling, data analysis, system validation, and signal and electrical data characterization. - Perform large-scale data analysis to evaluate signal quality, characterize system behavior, and guide design tradeoffs and performance optimization. - Collaborate closely with hardware, electrical, software, algorithm, and systems engineers to support end-to-end FPGA, MPSoC, firmware, and hardware integration. - Read and interpret schematics to understand board-level architecture, interfaces, signal paths, power domains, and subsystem dependencies. - Bring up new boards in the lab, troubleshoot issues independently, and debug hardware/firmware interactions using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, signal generators, power supplies, and related lab equipment. - Help translate frontier R&D concepts into scalable, reliable, and manufacturable digital systems. ## What We’re Looking For - B.S., M.S., or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field, with 5+ years of relevant industry experience. - Strong experience with end-to-end FPGA and MPSoC design, including architecture, RTL development, simulation, synthesis, timing closure, verification, and board bring-up. - Advanced experience with FPGA-based digital signal processing for real-time systems, including FIR filters, synchronization methods, streaming pipelines, and control-oriented digital design. - Strong experience with algorithm modeling and analysis using MATLAB and Python. - Experience implementing and validating signal-processing and control techniques such as PID, ADPLL, filtering, and signal characterization workflows. - Strong command of HDL/RTL implementation for digital signal processing, control, and high-performance data-path design. - Hands-on experience developing testbenches, verification environments, and bench-level validation workflows. - Strong understanding of firmware/hardware integration and system-level debugging in tightly coupled digital platforms. - Ability to read and understand electrical schematics and work effectively at the board and subsystem level. - Proven experience troubleshooting and bringing up hardware in the lab using standard electrical test equipment. - Experience working in a fast-moving, multidisciplinary environment with a high degree of ownership and technical independence. - Strong communication skills and a practical, problem-solving mindset. ## Nice to Have - Experience providing technical leadership for hardware and firmware engineering teams in complex product development environments. - Experience with image processing or vision-related algorithm pipelines. - PCB design experience, including familiarity with board-level layout considerations and signal integrity tradeoffs. - Experience with high-speed interfaces, instrumentation systems, or real-time sensing platforms. - Familiarity with mixed-signal systems and integration with ADCs, DACs, sensors, and embedded processors. - Exposure to metrology systems, scientific instrumentation, or advanced materials applications. ## Why Join SirenOpt - Help define a new category in advanced materials metrology. - Work on genuinely novel deep-tech hardware with real scientific and industrial impact. - Join an early-stage team where your decisions directly shape the product, technology, and company. - Build systems at the intersection of plasma science, electronics, sensing, AI-driven analytics, programmable logic, and advanced digital signal processing. - Contribute to technology that can expand what researchers and industry teams are able to see, measure, and optimize. Actual compensation within the pay range listed will be decided based on factors including skills and prior relevant experience. Base Pay Range $160,000—$240,000 USD ## Benefits - Equity and Salary compensation depends on experience - Health, Dental, Vision plans provided - 401k matching provided - Time off: 20 days of PTO per year, plus approximately 15 paid US holidays per year ## About SirenOpt ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: SirenOpt provides a non-destructive, real-time materials characterization platform that uses cold atmospheric plasma and AI to create detailed material fingerprints for manufacturing quality control. - **Entity Type**: Private (Venture stage; total funding $21.5M) - **Headquarters**: San Leandro, California, United States - **Founded**: 2022 - **Founders**: Jared O’Leary (CEO), Ali Mesbah (CTO, UC Berkeley), Joel Paulson (co-founder, UW–Madison) ## Core Business - **Primary Industry**: Manufacturing intelligence / advanced materials characterization (battery, semiconductor, aerospace, medical devices, packaging, electronics) - **Target Customers**: B2B, Enterprise manufacturers with high-throughput production lines (roll-to-roll, piece-to-piece) - **Mission**: “Create a paradigm shift in advanced materials characterization by leveraging cold atmospheric plasma, machine learning and predictive analytics to non-destructively create a uniquely distinctive, multifaceted material fingerprint in real-time.” [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/about) ## Products & Services - **PlasmaSens™** – A modular, scalable platform for inline and offline material analysis. Uses cold atmospheric plasma to measure multiple material properties (e.g., cathodes, anodes, separators, coatings) non-destructively and in real time. Available as a benchtop standalone system, piece-to-piece (robot-arm mounted) for inline inspection, and roll-to-roll (up to 1.5m width) for continuous high-throughput monitoring. Delivers pass/fail feedback and enables predictive quality control. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/) ## Market Standing - **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed - **Key Metric**: Total funding **$21.5M** across five rounds (Pre-Seed $3.0M led by SkyDeck Berkeley, Seed $6.6M led by Visionaries Tomorrow and Voyager Ventures, Venture $6.5M led by Hitachi Ventures and InMotion Ventures, Grant $2.4M from California Energy Commission) [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/sirenopt) [cbinsights.com](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/sirenopt) - **Notable Investors/Partners**: Voyager Ventures, Visionaries Tomorrow, Hitachi Ventures, InMotion Ventures, SkyDeck Berkeley, California Energy Commission (BRIDGE Grant), Lawrence Berkeley National Lab Cyclotron Road, Activate - **Growth Signals**: 41 employees (59% technical), deploying with largest industrial manufacturers across North America, Europe, and Asia; first commercial product scheduled for 2026; announced deployment at ECF in Autumn 2026 [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/) [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/sirenopt) ## Competitive Advantages - **Unique technology**: The only non-destructive measurement method using cold atmospheric plasma to generate a rich, multi-property material fingerprint in real time, without chemicals or sample preparation. - **Speed**: From hours to seconds – quality decisions made at production speed, catching defects before they propagate. - **Physics-informed AI**: Combines plasma signals with machine learning to detect hidden defects and predict failure modes, providing insights conventional testing cannot. - **Flexibility**: Modular platform (benchtop, inline, roll-to-roll) adaptable to diverse substrate sizes and production environments. ## Strategic Focus - **Commercialization**: Accelerating deployment of PlasmaSens into factory production lines, with a first commercial release in 2026 and an inline deployment at ECF that autumn. - **Market expansion**: Targeting battery, semiconductor, aerospace, medical device, and packaging manufacturers globally. - **Sustainability**: Enabling smarter manufacturing to reduce waste, improve yield, and accelerate development of advanced materials. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/about) ## Why Work Here - **Impact**: Join a deep-tech startup at the forefront of manufacturing intelligence, working on a “new to the world” metrology tool that transforms how materials are measured and controlled. - **Engineering culture**: 59% of the team holds technical roles (specialist/senior level); the company values hands-on work in hardware, firmware, software, and AI. - **Benefits**: Incentive stock options, comprehensive health coverage (medical, dental, vision), 20 days PTO, 15 paid company holidays, and 401(k) matching for qualified employees. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/careers) - **Location**: Based in San Leandro, CA (Bay Area). Office presence expected; remote/hybrid policy not explicitly stated. - **Growth trajectory**: Early-stage (41 employees, $21.5M funding) with active hiring (5 open roles including Lead Software Engineer, Staff EE, Quality Manager) and strong backing from top-tier investors. ## Sources 1. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/) – Product details, company overview 2. [sirenopt.com/about](https://www.sirenopt.com/about) – Mission, leadership, investors 3. [sirenopt.com/careers](https://www.sirenopt.com/careers) – Benefits, job openings 4. [linkedin.com/company/sirenopt](https://www.linkedin.com/company/sirenopt) – Employee count, funding rounds, department breakdown 5. [cbinsights.com/company/sirenopt](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/sirenopt) – Funding details, product differentiators ## Other roles at SirenOpt - [Staff Electrical Engineer – High Voltage Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-electrical-engineer-high-voltage-systems-sirenopt-san-leandro-california-hpjfgyfy2w30) — San Leandro California, United States - [Quality Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/quality-manager-sirenopt-san-leandro-california-t7zjbae32jb1) — San Leandro California, United States - [Lead Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/lead-software-engineer-sirenopt-san-leandro-california-x4mmkzw4kp06) — San Leandro California, United States - [Interested in future opportunities with SirenOpt?](https://feeny.ai/job/interested-in-future-opportunities-with-sirenopt-sirenopt-united-states-49qx3t14g1w4) — United States