Freelance Linux Kernel Development Jobs in Michigan

Company Overview

KLA is a global leader in diversified electronics for the semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem. Virtually every electronic device in the world is produced using our technologies. No laptop, smartphone, wearable device, voice-controlled gadget, flexible screen, VR device or smart car would have made it into your hands without us. KLA invents systems and solutions for the manufacturing of wafers and reticles, integrated circuits, packaging, printed circuit boards and flat panel displays. The innovative ideas and devices that are advancing humanity all begin with inspiration, research and development. KLA focuses more than average on innovation and we invest 15% of sales back into R&D. Our expert teams of physicists, engineers, data scientists and problem-solvers work together with the world's leading technology providers to accelerate the delivery of tomorrow's electronic devices. Life here is exciting and our teams thrive on tackling really hard problems. There is never a dull moment with us.

Group/Division

With over 40 years of semiconductor process control experience, chipmakers around the globe rely on KLA to ensure that their fabs ramp next-generation devices to volume production quickly and cost-effectively. Enabling the movement towards advanced chip design, KLA's Global Products Group (GPG), which is responsible for creating all of KLA's metrology and inspection products, is looking for the best and the brightest research scientist, software engineers, application development engineers, and senior product technology process engineers. Central Engineering is KLA's largest engineering organization comprised of 9 Centers-of-Excellence (CoE) in various disciplines applied across all product groups in the company. These CoE include Handling & Automation, Precision Motion Control, Sensors & Image Acquisition, Platform Design, and Packaging Engineering, among others. Talent includes over 500 engineers across global centers in Israel, China, India, and the US. Each CoE contributes not just talent and deliverables per discipline toward product programs, but also subject matter expertise, best practices, roadmaps, specialized facilities, apparatus, models, and analytics. These differentiate KLA not only in WHAT we do, but also in HOW we do it.

Job Description/Preferred Qualifications

We're looking for a HPC Systems Engineer to help power the compute infrastructure behind our R&D innovation! In this role, you'll support and evolve a highperformance Linux cluster used for physics modeling, simulation, algorithm development, and machinelearning workloads-enabling hundreds of engineers to do their best work every day. You'll play a key role in driving the reliability, performance, and scalability of a shared, missioncritical HPC environment, partnering closely with infrastructure, DevOps, and application teams to keep the platform fast, resilient, and ready for the most demanding computational challenges!

Key Responsibilities:
HPC Platform Operations
Operate and maintain a large-scale Linux based HPC cluster used for internal R&D workloads
Manage compute nodes, login nodes, and supporting infrastructure in a multi-tenant environment
Monitor cluster health, performance, and capacity; respond to incidents and degradations
Scheduler & Workload Management
Configure, tune, and support HPC job schedulers (e.g., SLURM, LSF, PBS, or equivalent)
Assist users with job submission issues, resource requests, and queue optimization
Help optimize scheduler policies to balance throughput, fairness, and utilization
Linux Systems Engineering
Install, configure, and maintain Linux operating systems across compute and service nodes
Manage OS updates, kernel changes, drivers (including GPU drivers where applicable), and system hardening
Troubleshoot complex Linux performance, networking, storage, and process level issues
Performance & Scaling
Support high throughput and parallel workloads across CPU and GPU resources
Diagnose performance bottlenecks across compute, storage, network, and scheduler layers
Assist with scaling activities such as node expansions, re provisioning, and hardware refreshes
Automation & Reliability
Use automation and configuration management tools to ensure consistency across the cluster
Contribute to scripting and tooling for node provisioning, validation, and lifecycle management
Participate in on call or escalation rotations as required to support a production R&D platform
Collaboration & User Support
Partner with internal engineering teams to understand workload requirements and usage patterns
Provide guidance and best practices for running workloads efficiently on shared HPC systems
Contribute to internal documentation and operational runbooks

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent practical experience
• 3+ years of handson Linux systems administration experience
• Direct experience working with HPC or largescale compute environments
• Practical experience with at least one HPC scheduler (SLURM, LSF, PBS, or similar)
• Strong Linux troubleshooting skills (processes, memory, I/O, networking, performance analysis)
• Comfort working in CLIdriven, production infrastructure environments

Preferred:

• Experience supporting GPUaccelerated workloads (CUDA, drivers, GPU scheduling concepts)
• Familiarity with parallel computing or scientific/engineering workloads
• Experience with cluster storage systems (e.g., Lustre, BeeGFS, NFS, or highperformance NAS/SAN)
• Exposure to automation tools (Ansible, scripting, InfrastructureasCode concepts)
• Familiarity with containers in HPC contexts (Singularity / Apptainer, rootless containers)
• Experience supporting internal developer or research communities

Minimum Qualifications

Doctorate (Academic) Degree and 0 years related work experience; Master's Level Degree and related work experience of 3 years; Bachelor's Level Degree and related work experience of 5 years

Base Pay Range: $105,900.00 - $180,000.00 AnnuallyPrimary Location: USA-MI-Ann Arbor-KLAKLA's total rewards package for employees may also include participation in performance incentive programs and eligibility for additional benefits including but not limited to: medical, dental, vision, life, and other voluntary benefits, 401(K) including company matching, employee stock purchase program (ESPP), student debt assistance, tuition reimbursement program, development and career growth opportunities and programs, financial planning benefits, wellness benefits including an employee assistance program (EAP), paid time off and paid company holidays, and family care and bonding leave.

Interns are eligible for some of the benefits listed. Our pay ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed reflects the pay for this position in the primary location identified in this posting. Actual pay depends on several factors, including state minimum pay wage rates, location, job-related skills, experience, and relevant education level or training. We are committed to complying with all applicable federal and state minimum wage requirements where applicable. If applicable, your recruiter can share more about the specific pay range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

KLA is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We will ensure that qualified individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us attalent.acquisition@kla.com or at +1-408-352-2808 to request accommodation.

Be aware of potentially fraudulent job postings or suspicious recruiting activity by persons that are currently posing as KLA employees. KLA never asks for any financial compensation to be considered for an interview, to become an employee, or for equipment. Further, KLA does not work with any recruiters or third parties who charge such fees either directly or on behalf of KLA. Please ensure that you have searched KLA's Careers website for legitimate job postings. KLA follows a recruiting process that involves multiple interviews in person or on video conferencing with our hiring managers. If you are concerned that a communication, an interview, an offer of employment, or that an employee is not legitimate, please send an email to talent.acquisition@kla.com to confirm the person you are communicating with is an employee. We take your privacy very seriously and confidentially handle your information.