Sr. Engineer, Mask, Terafab

About the role

• Sr. Engineer, Mask, Terafab | Tesla (Terafab)
• Location: Austin, Texas | Req ID: 284879 | Job Type: Full-time
• What to Expect

We are building Terafab, a vertically integrated semiconductor factory at an unprecedented scale. The facility houses logic, memory, packaging, test, and photomask production under one roof, optimized for rapid iteration and maximum compute density per square foot.

Terafab technology gets built, atom by atom, and mask engineering defines the foundation of every pattern we print. You will benefit from photomask experience: write, etch, inspect, repair, metrology, and pellicle.

You also need enough fluency in optical proximity correction, inverse lithography, source-mask optimization, mask process correction, and mask rule checks to co-specify processes that computational lithography can actually use, including curvilinear patterns and full-chip ILT - and that we can inspect, repair, and match to the scanner. This is a hands-on process role while the mask shop is being stood up.

What You'll Do

• Develop and qualify mask writing processes (e-beam and laser), including dose optimization, pattern fidelity, and critical dimension control for EUV and optical reticles
• Own resist processing, etch, pellicle integration, and phase-shift mask fabrication for advanced node reticles
• Establish mask inspection, defect disposition, and repair strategies using die-to-die, die-to-database, and actinic inspection methodologies
• Drive registration and CD uniformity control to meet tightening lithography error budgets
• Analyze processes from a first-principles, physics-based approach to understand and manipulate mechanisms, not just recipes
• Lead root cause analysis, establish inline metrology and SPC control strategies, and drive systematic improvement in mask production
• Support 24/7 manufacturing operations through rotations, on-call availability, and rapid response to critical production issues

What You'll Bring

• Degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Electrical Engineering, Physics, or related technical field, or equivalent experience
• 5+ years of hands-on photomask process engineering experience in a mask shop or semiconductor fab, especially supporting advanced logic, memory, or foundry reticle production
• Deep experience with mask writing, etch, inspection, repair, and process of record (POR) establishment for advanced node reticles
• Proficiency with mask metrology tools, CD-SEM, registration metrology, defect inspection platforms, and pellicle qualification
• Strong Design of Experiments skills and statistical analysis capability
• Ability to work closely and proactively across mask, lithography, etch, thin films, integration, and equipment engineering teams