Layout Design, Senior / Staff Engineer - 18157

Date posted 08/16/2026

Category Engineering****Hire Type Employee****Job ID 18157****Remote Eligible No****Date Posted 08/16/2026

Alternate Job Titles

• Senior Custom Layout Engineer
• IC Layout Staff Engineer
• Memory Layout Staff Engineer
• Custom IC Layout Engineer

We Are

Synopsys is the leader in engineering solutions from silicon to systems, enabling customers to rapidly innovate AI-powered products. We deliver industry-leading silicon design, IP, simulation and analysis solutions, and design services. We partner closely with our customers across a wide range of industries to maximize their R&D capability and productivity, powering innovation today that ignites the ingenuity of tomorrow.

You Are

You have spent years in custom layout design, and you know that the difference between a chip that performs beautifully and one that barely meets spec often comes down to decisions made at the polygon level. You understand FinFET technology not as a buzzword but as a set of real constraints that shape every routing decision, every contact placement, every boundary condition you navigate.

You are the kind of engineer who does not just run DRC and hope for clean results. You anticipate where violations will appear, you know which rules are soft and which are absolute, and you debug LVS mismatches by reading netlists and layouts side by side until the problem reveals itself. When a circuit designer hands you a schematic and says "make this fast," you already have three layout strategies in mind, each with different tradeoffs.

You think in layers and design rules, but you communicate in outcomes. Working with verification engineers does not slow you down because you have learned to speak their language. Scripting is not a chore for you but a force multiplier. You write Perl or TCL to automate repetitive work so you can focus on layout decisions that actually require judgment.

At Synopsys, you will work on memory and standard cell designs that power silicon inside everything from AI accelerators to automotive systems.

What You'll Be Doing

• Design custom layouts for memory leafcells and standard cells using Custom Compiler, optimizing for performance, area, and power across FinFET nodes
• Run physical verification flows including DRC, LVS, and ERC using ICV tools, debugging violations and ensuring clean signoff
• Collaborate with circuit designers to translate schematics into layouts that meet electrical specifications and design intent
• Develop automation scripts in Perl, Shell, or TCL to streamline layout tasks and verification flows
• Optimize existing layouts for speed, area, or power based on performance analysis and downstream feedback
• Participate in design reviews, providing layout feasibility input and identifying potential issues early
• Document layout methodologies and best practices to support knowledge sharing across the team

The Impact You Will Have

• Deliver memory and standard cell layouts that meet aggressive performance targets and enable next-generation silicon products
• Reduce design cycle time through automation and efficient verification workflows, accelerating time to tapeout
• Improve silicon yield and reliability by catching layout-induced issues before fabrication
• Contribute to Synopsys IP offerings that customers depend on for critical chip designs
• Mentor junior layout engineers and