Principal Scientist - InP Photonic Integrated Circuits & Datacom Laser Technologies

SMART Photonics is at a defining moment.

As Europe’s leading pure-play InP photonic foundry, we are moving beyond platform enablement toward technology leadership in active photonic integration for datacom, telecom, sensing, and emerging compute architectures. Central to this ambition is best-in-class laser technology, tightly integrated at wafer scale.

We are seeking a Principal Scientist who is not merely an expert, but a recognized authority in InP PICs and datacom laser devices, with the credibility, vision, and industrial depth to shape both technology direction and external perception of SMART Photonics.

This role is for someone who has already built things that work in production, understands the brutal details of yield, reliability, and variability and still thinks about what comes next.

Your Mission

You will define, lead, and safeguard the scientific and technological excellence of SMART Photonics’ InP laser and active device portfolio, with a strong emphasis on datacom laser sources, including DFB lasers and their integration into scalable PIC platforms.

You will operate at the intersection of:

• Fundamental device physics

• Wafer-level manufacturability

• Customer-driven performance requirements

• Long-term platform strategy

Your influence will extend far beyond your own projects . Shaping roadmaps, mentoring senior talent, engaging with top-tier customers, and representing SMART Photonics on the global stage.

Key Responsibilities

1. Technology Vision & Strategy

• Define and evolve the long-term technology roadmap for InP-based lasers and active PIC building blocks, aligned with datacom market needs (performance, cost, scale, reliability).

• Act as a key technical advisor on our TCC (Technical Competence Centre) and to executive leadership on technology investments, platform evolution, and differentiation strategy.

• Anticipate industry trends (e.g. higher baud rates, integration density, co-packaged optics) and translate them into actionable R&D directions.

2. Scientific & Technical Leadership

• Provide deep technical ownership of datacom laser technologies, including DFB lasers, from epitaxial design through PIC integration and characterization.

• Drive innovation in:

  • Laser architectures and integration concepts

  • Optical, electrical, and thermal design trade-offs

  • Yield, uniformity, and wafer-scale reproducibility

• Guide the transition from experimental concepts to robust, manufacturable foundry processes.

• Ensure device performance, reliability, and variability are addressed in time and not as afterthoughts.

3. Foundry & Platform Excellence

• Act as a guardian of platform integrity, ensuring that new laser concepts enhance the foundry ecosystem.

• Contribute directly to:

  • PDK evolution and validation

  • Compact model strategy and accuracy

  • Design rules and process design trade-offs

• Work closely with process integration, epitaxy, test & characterization, and R&D engineering teams.

4. External Impact & Representation

• Serve as a technical ambassador for SMART Photonics:

  • Present at leading international conferences

  • Engage in strategic customer discussions

  • Participate in industry consortia, sales exhibitions and research collaborations

• Shape SMART Photonics’ external technical reputation through publications, invited talks, and patents.

• Build and maintain strong relationships with key ecosystem partners (customers, universities, research institutes).

5. Mentorship & Technical Culture

• Mentor senior scientists and engineers, helping them grow into technical leaders.

• Set the bar for our company values; we drive innovation, we delight our costumers, we commit to excellence and we do it together.

• Foster a culture where deep thinking, data-driven decisions, and long-term impact are valued.

Essential Requirements;

• Ph.D. in Photonics.

• 10+ years of industrial experience in semiconductor photonics, with a strong focus on InP PICs.

• Demonstrated, hands-on expertise in datacom laser technologies, including DFB lasers, at wafer scale.

• Proven experience bringing photonic devices from R&D into stable, manufacturable production.

• Available for an onsite position at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven (NL), Working from Home possible up to 25%

• Willingness to travel for conferences, customer visits, and collaborations. (10 to 15%)

• Strong sense of ownership and long-term responsibility for technology decisions.

Technical Depth

You should be deeply comfortable with:

• InP epitaxy–device–process interactions

• Laser physics, cavity design, and mode control

• Electrical and thermal effects in integrated lasers

• Wafer-level variability, yield, and reliability considerations

• Industrial fab environments and foundry constraints

• You know where theory ends and where reality begins.

Leadership & Influence

• Recognized as a technical authority by peers, customers, or the broader photonics community.

• Able to influence without hierarchy, using clarity, credibility, and data.

• Comfortable challenging assumptions; including your own.

Why SMART Photonics

At SMART Photonics, you will not just optimize a device you will help define how InP photonic integration is done at industrial scale in Europe and beyond.

You will work with:

• A unique pure-play foundry model

• Customers who push real-world limits

• A team that values expertise over hierarchy

And you will leave a technical legacy embedded in platforms used worldwide.

Salary and additional benefits to be aligned on during the first interview with our Talent Acquisition Lead.