Validation and Debug Engineer - Power Electronics

Graphcore is a globally recognised leader in Artificial Intelligence computing systems. The company designs advanced semiconductors and data centre hardware that provide the specialised processing power needed to drive AI innovation, while delivering the efficiency required to support its broader adoption.

As part of the SoftBank Group, Graphcore is a member of an elite family of companies responsible for some of the world’s most transformative technologies. We are expending our labs in Bristol which will play a central role in Graphcore's work building the future of AI computing.

We are looking for a Validation and Debug engineer to work with Architecture, Silicon Engineering, Hardware Engineering and the Firmware team to help create and execute the Validation and debug of our cutting-edge system platforms. As such you will need to develop a detailed understanding of our silicon and platform products. Your role will be to create and execute bring-up plans of our silicon devices and platforms in systems to show that they will operate correctly over all conditions in the final product. This bring-up will also involve debugging of hardware and firmware. You will concentrate on mainly manual testing of systems in the lab with the aid of some automation.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Perform Validation for new hardware platforms.
• Debug PCB, power, signal integrity, and interface issues.
• Support validation of high-current multi-phase SMPS power systems, including sequencing, transient response, thermal behaviour, load regulation, and power integrity analysis.
• Debug complex power delivery networks supporting high-speed ASICs, FPGAs, MCUs, and accelerator devices.
• Validate voltage rails, sequencing requirements, ripple, noise, efficiency, and thermal performance of multi-phase regulators.
• Identify root causes and drive corrective actions across hardware and firmware domains.
• Create bring-up documentation, test procedures, and debug reports.

Working closely with:

• PCB design engineers
• Power engineers
• Signal integrity engineers
• Embedded software teams

Essential skills

• Hardware Validation and Debug
• Multi-phase SMPS validation
• Power integrity analysis
• Signal integrity analysis
• Root-cause analysis
• Embedded systems
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Low-level system integration
• An ability to work independently without daily oversight.
• Independently performs board bring-up and subsystem debug
• Drives issue resolution across teams.
• Use advanced lab instrumentation including:
  • High-bandwidth oscilloscopes
  • PCIe protocol analysers
  • Logic analysers
  • Electronic loads
  • Power analysers

• Hands-on experience with:
• Multi-phase SMPS and PDN validation

Desirable skills:

• Knowledge of PCBA and system level technologies
• Background knowledge of ATE systems and capabilities. You may not be directly involved with such testing.
• The ability to code or script automation and data analysis using appropriate coding languages such as Python, LabView and BASH.
• Experience with Renesas controllers

Benefits:

In addition to a competitive salary, Graphcore offers a competitive benefits package. We welcome people of different backgrounds and experiences; we’re committed to building an inclusive work environment that makes Graphcore a great home for everyone. We offer an equal opportunity process and understand that there are visible and invisible differences in all of us. We can provide a flexible approach to interview and encourage you to chat to us if you require any reasonable adjustments.