Senior System Architect
Ottawa, ON, Canada | Full-Time | Ranovus
About Us
Ranovus is a fabless semiconductor company headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, developing next-generation co-packaged optics (CPO) solutions for AI and data center interconnects. Our Odin optical engine integrates a Quantum Dot Multi-Wavelength Laser, Photonic Integrated Circuit (PIC), and ASIC into a single co-packaged module – delivering the performance and density required by hyperscale AI infrastructure.
The Role
The Senior System Architect is a founding member of the Ranovus System Team, responsible for owning top-level architecture decisions and orchestrating definition of design requirements with the block level owners from the contributing technical domains. You will define the system partitioning and power-performance-cost-yield-manufacturability trade-offs for the Odin CPO platform, and ensure that architecture choices are manufacturable, testable, and reliable from day one.
Key Responsibilities
- Define and issue Technical Engineering Requirements (TERs) to all sub-teams as the primary architectural authority.
- Own top-level system architecture assessment: PIC, ASIC, Laser, and Packaging partitioning across performance, cost, yield, and manufacturability dimensions.
- Contribute in DFM/DFT/DFR compliance
- Lead DFx gate reviews at each major milestone
- Maintain the system architecture document, TER register, and Interface Control Documents (ICDs) as living, version-controlled artifacts.
Required Qualifications
- MSc. or Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Photonics, or related field.
- 12+ years in system architecture or product engineering for semiconductor or photonic products.
- Demonstrated experience owning cross-functional architecture trade-offs from concept through volume production.
- Hands-on background in at least two of: PIC integration, ASIC architecture, advanced packaging, or optical system design.
- Experience with DFM, DFR, and DFT in compound semiconductor, silicon photonics, or CPO products.
- Strong technical writing skills – ability to author and maintain formal TERs, ICDs, and architecture requirement documents.
Nice To Have
- Familiarity with foundry PDKs and process corner characterization.
- Knowledge of OIF CEI, IEEE 802.3, or CPO-related MSA standards.
- Background in reliability modeling: FMEA, HTOL, thermal cycling for optoelectronic components.
What You'll Do
You will play a key role in advancing next-generation laser products from development through qualification. By combining hands-on characterization, automation development, reliability testing, and machine vision inspection, you will help establish the data, tools, and processes needed to bring high-performance laser products into production. Working closely with R&D, qualification and reliability teams, packaging suppliers, and external test providers, you will contribute directly to the successful commercialization of cutting-edge photonic technologies.
You Belong At Ranovus
We appreciate the time you invest in exploring opportunities with us. At Ranovus, we believe diverse perspectives and a strong sense of belonging are essential to building innovative technology and resilient teams. If your experience doesn’t match every requirement, we still encourage you to apply. We value curiosity, growth, and the unique strengths each person brings.
Ranovus is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applicants from all backgrounds and lived experiences, including those from equity-deserving and underrepresented communities. We are committed to an accessible recruitment process in accordance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. Accommodations are available at any stage of the hiring process on request. Reach out to our Talent team at [email protected] for support.
We are committed to a respectful and transparent candidate experience, with clear and timely communication at every stage. We use AI tools to help screen and assess applications. These tools help with consistency and efficiency, but they don’t replace human judgment. All hiring decisions are made by people, guided by care, context, and fairness.
Thank you for your interest in this role, an existing vacancy on our team. We look forward to connecting with you.
