Photonics Layout Intern - Summer 2027

Lightmatter is leading the revolution in AI data center infrastructure, enabling the next giant leaps in human progress. The company invented the world’s first 3D-stacked photonics engine, Passage™, capable of connecting thousands to millions of processors at the speed of light in extreme-scale data centers for the most advanced AI and HPC workloads.

Lightmatter raised $400 million in its Series D round, reaching a valuation of $4.4 billion. We will continue to accelerate the development of data center photonics and grow every department at Lightmatter!

If you're passionate about tackling complex challenges, making an impact, and being an expert in your craft, join our team of brilliant scientists, engineers, and accomplished industry leaders.

Lightmatter is (re)inventing the future of computing with light!

About this job

We are looking for an MS or PhD Candidate to fill the internship position within a Photonics Layout and Verification team. In this role, you will be working on execution and verification for some of the state of the art block- and chip-scale photonic interconnects. You will gain unique experience with the industry-leading photonics integration and verification flows. An ideal candidate must have practical experience with silicon photonics complemented with strong human and agentic coding skills.

Join a tight-knit team where each individual’s contributions directly influence the success of the company and product. You'll have the opportunity to build innovative integrated photonic solutions from the ground up and tackle groundbreaking challenges. Work with people who love to build and who thrive in diverse technical environments where great ideas are prioritized.

Responsibilities:

Perform rigorous layout- and netlist-driven photonic simulation and verification, identify performance bottlenecks and troubleshoot issues.

Run Monte Carlo and corner analysis.

Help further develop and improve photonic layout, verification and integration flows for multiple photonic processes and foundries

Contribute to proprietary PDK development

Requirements:

MS or PhD Candidate in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Computer Science or similar

Understanding of fundamental concepts of silicon photonics

Familiarity with of a wide variety of silicon photonics devices, knowledge of their key performance metrics

Proficiency with Python

Experience with script-based photonic circuit design and simulations using GDSFactory, PhotonForge or similar

Proficiency with AI and agentic workflows

Good communication skills, demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively with multidisciplinary teams

Our internship hourly rates are a standard pay determined based on the position and your location, year in school, degree, and experience.

Hourly Rate in USD$40—$45 USD

Benefits

Comprehensive Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)

Retirement Savings Matching Program

Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D)

Generous Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)

Paid Family Leave

Short Term & Long Term Disability

Training & Development

Commuter Benefits

Flexible, hybrid workplace model

Equity grants (applicable to full-time employees)

Benefits eligibility may vary depending on your employment status and location. Lightmatter recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.

Export Control

Candidates should have capacity to comply with the federally mandated requirements of U.S. export control laws.