CPU Power-Management Design Engineer

As the pioneers who introduced RISC-V to the world, SiFive is transforming the future of compute by bringing the limitless potential of RISC-V to the highest performance and most data-intensive applications in the world. SiFive’s unrivaled compute platforms are continuing to enable leading technology companies around the world to innovate, optimize and deliver the most advanced solutions of tomorrow across every market segment of chip design, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, automotive, data center, mobile, and consumer. With SiFive, the future of RISC-V has no limits.

At SiFive, we are always excited to connect with talented individuals, who are just as passionate about driving innovation and changing the world as we are.  

Our constant innovation and ongoing success is down to our amazing teams of incredibly talented people, who collaborate and support each other to come up with truly groundbreaking ideas and solutions.  Solutions that will have a huge impact on people's lives; making the world a better place, one processor at a time. 

Are you ready?  

To learn more about SiFive’s phenomenal success and to see why we have won the GSA’s prestigious Most Respected Private Company Award (for the fourth time!), check out our website and Glassdoor pages.

Job Description:

The Role:

SiFive is looking for hardware engineers who are passionate about designing industry-leading CPU and interconnect IP to help drive the tidal wave of adoption of RISC-V as the architecture of choice for SOC designs across a broad variety of vertical applications. We’re creating massively customizable IP and improving time-to-market by designing hardware as highly-configurable generators. We're leveraging technology and ideas from the software industry to execute hardware design with the agility of software development.

As a Power-Management/Reset/Clock Micro-Architect and RTL Design Engineer at SiFive, you will be part of a team of engineers who are passionate about designing industry-leading CPU cores and subsystems based on the revolutionary open RISC-V and TileLink architectures. You will create power management, reset, and clocking solutions that provide the central nervous system for cutting-edge RISC-V CPU and SoC IP designs. You will work in a fast-paced dynamic environment to bring new hardware IP to market quickly, with high quality and exceptional performance - delivering hardware at the speed of software!

Join us, and surf the RISC-V wave with SiFive!

Responsibilities:

• Work with the architecture team to understand and define power management requirements.

• Architect, design and implement core clocking, reset and power management solutions.

• Microarchitecture development and specification. Ensure that knowledge is shared via clear documentation and participation in a culture of collaborative design.

• Perform initial sandbox verification, and work with the design verification team to create and execute thorough verification test plans.

• Work with a physical implementation team to implement and optimise physical design to meet frequency, area, power goals.

• Work with a software team to enable and optimise power management features.

Requirements:

• 3+ years of recent industry experience in CPU and SoC clocking, reset, and power-management logic designs.

• Experience in high-performance, energy-efficient CPU and SoC designs.

• Expertise in CPU and SoC clocking, reset design, and power management, including:

  • Reset control and design strategies: Clock distribution, dynamic clocking, clock gating, and clock boundary crossing strategies

  • Power state definition and management and Power Management Unit (PMU) design

  • Dynamic and static power reduction techniques, including retention and power-up/down sequencing

  • Dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS) and Di/dt mitigation strategies

  • Understanding of DFT, MBIST, Debug and Error handling in CPU designs

  • Power-aware simulation

• Proficiency with hardware (RTL) design in Verilog, SystemVerilog, or VDHL.

• Good understanding of various RTL quality checks like Lint, CDC, RDC etc. Hands-on experience with Spyglass is a plus.

• Attention to detail and a focus on high-quality design.

• Ability to work well with others and a belief that engineering is a team sport.

• Knowledge of at least one object-oriented and/or functional programming language.

• Background of successful CPU or SoC development from architecture through tapeout.

• BS/MS degree in EE, CE, CS or a related technical discipline, or equivalent experience.

• Experience with AMBA Interconnect Protocols, such as AXI, AHB, and APB.

• Experience with AMBA Low Power Protocol Interface, including P-channel  and Q-channel protocols.

• Experience with Scala/Chisel, Bluespec, or some other language/DSL for expressing configurable hardware via software

• Knowledge of RISC-V architecture

• Experience with Git/Github, Jira, Confluence 

SiFive is proud to be an equal employment opportunity workplace. We offer a competitive compensation package that includes flexible paid time off, health, vision and dental benefits, 401(k) plan, employee stock option program, and much more. If you yearn to be challenged and wish to work in an environment where the boundaries of your creativity and skills will be tested, then SiFive is the place for you. 

Pay & Benefits

Consistent with SiFive values and applicable law, we provide the following information to promote pay transparency and equity. We have a market-based pay structure which varies by location.  Please note that the base pay range is a guideline, and our compensation range reflects the cost of labor in the U.S. geographic market based on the location of the role. Pay within these ranges varies and depends on job-related knowledge, skills, and relevant work experience. 

For candidates who receive and offer, the starting salary will vary based on various factors including, but not limited to, such qualifications as, skill level, competencies, and work location.  The range provided may represent a candidate range and may not reflect the full range for an individual tenured employee.

Base Pay Range

In addition to base pay, this role may be eligible for variable/ incentive compensation and/ or equity.  In addition, this role is eligible for a comprehensive, competitive benefits package which may include healthcare and retirement plans, paid time off, and more! 

Additional Information:

This position requires a successful background and reference checks and satisfactory proof of your right to work in

Any offer of employment for this position is also contingent on the Company verifying that you are a authorized for access to export-controlled technology under applicable export control laws or, if you are not already authorized, our ability to successfully obtain any necessary export license(s) or other approvals.

SiFive is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.

As an E-Verify employer, we use this system to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires in accordance with federal law. All applicants will be required to complete a Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, upon hire. We do not use E-Verify to pre-screen job candidates and will comply with all E-Verify regulations.

California residents: please see our job candidate notice for more information on how we handle your personal information and your privacy rights: Privacy Policy Document.