Principal Design Engineer - Controller

Job description

At Cadence, we hire and develop leaders and innovators who want to make an impact on the world of technology.Job Title: Principal Design Engineer Location: Shanghai, China Job Summary We are looking for a Principal Design Engineer to drive the development of advanced USB4 Controller IP. Primary Responsibilities • Serve as a technical leader and senior design expert for high-performance USB4 Controller IP development. • Drive key architecture and design decisions for the USB4 controller with a strong understanding of power, performance, area, feature, and product requirements. • Lead frontend design activities for USB4 controller development from specification and micro-architecture through RTL implementation, subsystem integration, and design reviews. • Define and implement key controller functions such as register architecture, DMA/data movement flows, interrupt handling, link and power management related control logic, and host/system interfaces. • Drive controller-to-PHY integration, including interface definition, bring-up readiness, interoperability considerations, and issue resolution across subsystem boundaries. • Provide technical guidance and mentoring to team members, while promoting engineering quality and execution excellence. • Work closely with verification teams on test planning, coverage closure, debug strategy, and root-cause analysis for complex design issues. • Collaborate with firmware, validation, and lab teams on bring-up, compliance-related debugging, and pre-/post-silicon issue investigation to ensure successful USB4 controller project delivery. • Partner with project management and global cross-functional teams to deliver high-quality IP on schedule. • Support IP integration, release readiness, and customer delivery activities. • Explore and apply AI-assisted methods where appropriate to improve engineering efficiency in areas such as design analysis, issue triage, automation scripting, and technical knowledge sharing. Position Requirements • MS or BS degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field. • 10+ years of relevant industry experience. • 8+ years of hands-on ASIC design experience delivering advanced Controller IP and/or ASIC/SoC products. • Strong knowledge of digital architecture, RTL design, verification methodology, and end-to-end ASIC development flows. • Solid understanding of controller IP architecture and one or more industry-standard protocols at the controller, transaction, or link layer, such as USB, PCIe, Ethernet, MIPI, or similar standards. • Strong understanding of controller design concepts, including AMBA-based bus interfaces, DMA architecture, descriptor-based data transfer, register programming models, and interrupt systems. • Good understanding of controller-to-PHY integration, post-silicon validation, and the system-level role of controller IP in complex SoCs. • Demonstrated ability to provide technical leadership, mentor engineers, and influence design direction across cross-functional teams. • Customer-focused mindset with the ability to align internal execution to meet or exceed customer expectations. • Strong team-oriented attitude, innovative thinking, and a practical, results-driven approach. • Excellent cross-functional communication skills in both English and Mandarin. • Self-motivated, proactive, and capable of handling multiple tasks effectively. Preferred Qualifications • Direct experience with USB4, USB 3.x, or other high-speed interface controller architectures is a strong plus. • Direct experience developing high-speed interface Controller IP in advanced process nodes. • Experience with controller-PHY interface standards such as PIPE, UTMI/ULPI, or similar interfaces. • Experience working with embedded microcontrollers, DSPs, or firmware development related to Controller IP. • Experience with Cadence ASIC design tools and development environments. • Interest in or experience with AI-assisted engineering tools for productivity improvement, data analysis, debug support, or documentation automation. We’re doing work that matters. Help us solve what others can’t.