Design Verification Engineer Startup Jobs in Minnesota

Micron's Interface Pathfinding team operates at the leading edge of that mission - driving performance-scaling innovation across circuits, signaling, packaging, and interconnects with a 3-5 year technology horizon. As the Digital Design Engineer / Chip Lead, you will be the technical anchor of a small, senior team spanning analog design, layout, silicon characterization, physical design, and verification - united around the goal of carrying high-speed interface innovations from architecture to tape-out.

This is a full-ownership role. You will define top-level chip architecture, author and maintain synthesizable RTL for all soft IP control blocks, own timing constraints and clock domain crossing strategy, drive synthesis and tape-out sign-off, and produce the design documentation that serves as the authoritative reference for the team. The program integrates a fully custom analog PHY alongside digital control functions - providing a technically rich chip-lead scope that spans hard macro integration, third-party IP management, and original RTL design.

This is a foundational hire for a growing program. Strong execution early is expected to lead to follow-on projects of increasing scope, team size, and design complexity.

Responsibilities

• Chip Architecture & Integration: Define top-level chip architecture, partition responsibilities across hard and soft IP blocks, and own the integration of hard macros alongside third-party soft IP.

• RTL Design: Author, review, and maintain synthesizable RTL (SystemVerilog) for all soft IP control blocks, CSR/register file, clocking control logic, and top-level integration.

• Timing Closure Leadership: Develop and own chip-level timing constraints (SDC), define clock domain crossing strategy, and provide timing budgets per block to the Physical Design engineer.

• Synthesis: Drive logic synthesis (DC / Genus) and guide optimization for PPA targets across all design blocks.

• IP Management: Define interfaces between PHY hard macro, third-party soft IP, and internally designed blocks; manage IP integration agreements and vendor coordination.

• Tape-Out Ownership: Own and drive the tape-out checklist sign-off process, coordinating across Physical Design, Verification, and analog team members to achieve clean handoff to the foundry.

• Design Documentation: Author architecture specifications, block-level design specifications, and interface control documents that serve as the authoritative reference for the team.

• Follow-On Roadmap: Capture design decisions, lessons learned, and architectural rationale to accelerate follow-on chip development.

Basic Qualifications

• BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field

• 10+ years of ASIC/digital design experience with at least one prior tape-out in a chip lead, design lead, or senior designer role

• Expert-level proficiency in SystemVerilog RTL design and coding best practices

• Strong experience with logic synthesis tools (Synopsys Design Compiler or Cadence Genus) and static timing analysis (PrimeTime or Tempus)

• Proficiency with industry-standard RTL simulation and debug tools (VCS, Xcelium, or equivalent; Verdi or DVE for waveform debug)

• Solid understanding of CDC analysis methodologies and tools (SpyGlass, JasperGold CDC, or equivalent)

• Demonstrated experience integrating hard and soft IP blocks in a mixed-signal or PHY-adjacent chip environment

• Ability to work effectively as a technical lead on a small team - comfortable making decisions with incomplete information and owning the outcomes

• Strong written communication skills - this role produces specifications, not just code

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with high-speed PHY architectures (SerDes, DDR, or equivalent analog I/O structures)

• Familiarity with I2C management bus architecture, Eye Monitor control logic, or PRBS-based error counting implementations

• Experience with DFT strategy definition including scan insertion, ATPG planning, and boundary scan for high-speed I/O

• Familiarity with OTP/fuse-based trim and calibration architectures for PHY analog parameters

• Prior experience in a small team or startup-like environment where role boundaries are defined by need rather than org chart