Application Engineer

Tired of repeating the same test programs on the same platform, year after year? This role is built for engineers who want to invent, not just implement.

Our client is a global leader in automatic test equipment, and this newly-expanded R&D team exists for one purpose: to develop the test concepts that don't exist yet. You won't be maintaining production test programs, you'll be taking a blank page, a customer's half-formed problem, and turning it into a working prototype, a technology demonstrator, and very often a patent application.

What makes this different

• New concepts, not maintenance: This isn't incremental application engineering. Every project starts from "what if". New test methodologies for technologies that haven't been productised yet, from high-speed digital interfaces to electro-optical and silicon photonics test.
• Your ideas become IP: You'll be encouraged to file for patents on the ideas you develop. If you want your engineering work to leave a lasting, attributable footprint, this is a rare place to do it.
• Full ownership of the journey: Projects run 1–2 years, from feasibility study through proof-of-concept and into direct engagement with lead customers and technology partners. You will see your work through from idea to demonstration.
• Hands-on across hardware and software: This role deliberately spans hardware (PCB design for DUT boards and probe cards), software, and test physics. You'll build the board, write the code, and prove the concept.
• A real innovation playground: Low bureaucracy, direct access to internal stakeholders and external partners, and genuine freedom to pursue the ideas you believe in.

What you'll be doing

• Develop and prototype innovative semiconductor test solutions and methodologies for emerging technologies and applications.
• Validate and implement new test concepts on a leading industrial test platform, from feasibility study through proof-of-concept demonstration and customer engagement.
• Collaborate with customers, technology partners, and internal organisations to identify and address future test challenges.
• Work across business units to accelerate innovation and solution development.
• Contribute to the generation of intellectual property, technology demonstrators, and future product concepts, including formal patent applications.
• Analyse industry trends and help define the next generation of semiconductor test solutions.

What you'll bring

• Master's degree or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Mechatronics, Microelectronics, Semiconductor Engineering, Computer Engineering, Microsystems Engineering, Materials Science, or a related discipline and equivalent experience is also considered.
• Hands-on experience with a leading industrial ATE platform, with a focus on high-speed, RF, or electro-optical applications. Having proven strength in one of these three is enough to build on.
• PCB design experience for DUT boards or probe cards is a strong plus, though not essential.
• Working knowledge of high-speed digital interfaces such as PCIe, UCIe, Ethernet, USB, or CXL, and the measurement techniques behind them.
• A solid grounding in semiconductor devices, advanced packaging, and test methodology — plus real curiosity about where the industry is heading next.
• Comfort working across teams, cultures, and organisational levels, and a genuine appetite for creative problem-solving.
• Fluent English; German is an advantage.
• Willingness to travel occasionally (up to around 20%), including to Asia and the US, to work directly with customers and partners.

In return

You'll join a genuinely innovative R&D function within a global market leader with the resources of a large, established organisation and the freedom of a small, newly-formed team. Expect strong training and development, real opportunities to grow within the business locally and internationally, and a competitive salary and benefits package including bonus.

If you're the kind of engineer who's already sketching out the "next" solution before anyone's asked for it, we'd like to hear from you.