Senior Engineer / Scientist

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Senior Engineer / Scientist – CMP Fundamentals

Description

The CMP Fundamentals team is seeking an experienced scientist or engineer to serve as a technical leader in hands-on experimental research, rheology, interfacial science, and tribology supporting next-generation CMP consumables and processes.

This position will combine rigorous scientific investigation, advanced characterization, experimental research, and practical analytical and reduced-order modeling to build fundamental understanding of the relationships between consumable properties, process conditions, and polishing performance.

A key objective of this role is to connect material behavior with polishing performance through well-designed experiments, physical insight, and fit-for-purpose models. The successful candidate will investigate interfacial interactions, friction, and wear; develop experimentally grounded reduced-order models; and translate findings into practical guidance.

The successful candidate must be a hands-on experimentalist who personally sets up and troubleshoots laboratory equipment, prepares samples, and conducts experiments. Modeling, coding, and theoretical analysis are supporting tools, not substitutes for direct laboratory work.

This role is intended to develop a long-term CMP technical expert capable of owning complex technical problem statements, mentoring future scientists and engineers, and serving as a critical technical partner for product development, customer support, and innovation efforts.

Approximately 20% travel may be required to customer sites, development facilities, collaborator locations, and technical review meetings.

This position is ultimately intended to be based onsite in Newark, Delaware. To support recruitment of exceptional candidates, flexibility may be provided during the initial onboarding and transition period. Candidates should be willing to relocate to the Newark area and work onsite as the long-term expectation for the role.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership & Scientific Problem Solving

• Lead complex technical investigations requiring deep understanding of CMP fundamentals, material behavior, and process interactions.
• Own and define technical problem statements supporting product development and customer needs.
• Apply rigorous science-based methodologies to solve short- and long-term technology challenges.
• Partner with research, applications, product development, manufacturing, and data science teams to accelerate innovation.

Experimental Research & Characterization

• Design and execute hands-on experiments to investigate polishing mechanisms.
• Develop and refine test methods, fixtures, and measurement protocols; apply design of experiments, repeatability checks, and data analysis to generate reliable results.
• Integrate laboratory observations, characterization data, and model predictions to explain mechanisms and guide product development and customer investigations.

Applied Modeling & Experimental Interpretation

• Develop practical analytical, empirical, and reduced-order models that connect polishing performance.
• Use first-principles reasoning, scaling relationships, and experimental data to identify dominant mechanisms and select an appropriate level of model complexity.
• Evaluate model assumptions, governing equations, constitutive relationships, material models, and boundary conditions to ensure simulations accurately represent physical behavior.
• Collaborate with simulation specialists when higher-fidelity analysis is needed, contributing measured material properties, physical interpretation, and validation data.

CMP Fundamentals Development

• Build fundamental understanding of interactions between:
• Pad/Slurry materials
• Solid Mechanics
• Fluid mechanics
• Contact mechanics
• Tribology and wear
• Semiconductor process operating conditions
• Translate scientific understanding into actionable design guidance and product development recommendations.

Mentorship & Collaboration

• Demonstrate strong mentorship and train scientists, engineers, and technicians.
• Guide others actively, sharing knowledge openly, providing constructive feedback
• Foster a collaborative environment where scientists and engineers can learn with growth mindset.
• Develop and manage collaborations with internal and external technical experts.
• Communicate findings through technical reports, presentations, customer interactions, patents, and publications.

Required Qualifications

• Master's degree or Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, Applied Mathematics, or related discipline.
• 5-10+ years of industrial experience applying scientific and engineering principles to solve complex technical problems.
• Demonstrated experience designing and executing experiments, developing measurement methods, and using analytical or reduced-order models to interpret physical behavior.
• Strong hands-on background in rheology, interfacial science, tribology, polymer/materials characterization, or closely related experimental research.
• Proficiency in experimental design, quantitative data analysis, and interpretation of material and process measurements.
• Application of reduced-order models, scaling analysis, or empirical correlations to connect experimental measurements with process performance

Expert knowledge in at least some of the following areas

• Interfacial science
• Transport phenomena
• Fluid mechanics
• Polymer mechanics
• Contact mechanics
• Fracture mechanics
• Tribology
• Surface characterization
• Materials characterization
• Comfortable connecting hands-on experimentation and characterization with physical theory and practical modeling.
• Strong interpersonal and collaboration skills with multidisciplinary technical teams.

Desired Skills

• Familiarity with CMP consumables, processes, and polishing mechanisms.
• Use of established simulation packages such as COMSOL, ANSYS, or Abaqus to support experimental interpretation and engineering decisions
• Use of Python, MATLAB, Maple, or similar tools for data analysis, visualization, simple scripting, and practical engineering calculations

Experience evaluating

• Model assumptions, governing equations, and constitutive relationships
• Experimental repeatability, measurement uncertainty, and data quality
• Model calibration, parameter estimation, and uncertainty quantification
• Correlation of simulation predictions with experimental observations and physical behavior
• Demonstrated record of technical innovation through patents, publications, or product development contributions.

#LI-LA1

#On-site

#Newark,DE

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Qnity is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability or any other protected class. If you need a reasonable accommodation to search or apply for a position, please visit our Accessibility Page for Contact Information.

Qnity offers a comprehensive pay and benefits package. To learn more visit the Compensation and Benefits page.

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