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Job Details:
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Job Description:
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This position is in the Logic Technology Development (LTD) team, working in one of the most advanced semiconductor development facilities in the world.
The LTD Resolution Enhancement Technology (RET) team is extending the limits of feature sizes that are patternable on Intel's devices, using current and future lithography manufacturing tooling. The team works closely with fab integrated lithography process and mask manufacturing teams using computational lithography tooling to optimize mask patterns and maximize manufacturing process capability. The RET team also works closely with the design rule definition teams, using lithography and patterning simulation capabilities to determine design rules for future Intel process nodes.
What we offer:
We foster a collaborative, supportive, and exciting environment where the brightest minds in the world come together to achieve exceptional results. We give you opportunities to transform technology and create a better future, by delivering products that make the world a better place.
Responsibilities include:
- Optical Proximity Correction (OPC) simulations
- Research, development, and implementation of Resolution Enhancement Techniques (RET) for existing and novel process technologies
- Defines and selects new approaches and implementation of RET
- Maintains substantial knowledge of the state\-of\-the\-art principles and theories in lithography, optics, photoresists, computer modeling, and software engineering
- Image processing and statistical analysis of data for OPC models
- OPC model calibration
- OPC recipe code optimization and validation
- Algorithmic design pattern layout manipulation
- Use predictive modeling, statistics, machine learning, and other data analysis techniques to collect, explore, visualize fab process data, and develop RET software algorithms and applications to compensate for physical effects in photolithography imaging and the etch pattern transfer process
- Support of production mask tapeout and RET validation
- Maintain a deep knowledge of state\-of\-the\-art principles and trends in RET and semiconductor technology
- Creation of technical documentation and presentations
Qualifications:
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Minimum qualifications are required to be initially considered for this position. Preferred qualifications are in addition to the minimum requirements and are considered a plus factor in identifying top candidates. Requirements listed would be obtained through a combination of industry relevant job experience, internship experiences and or schoolwork/classes/research.
Minimum Qualifications:
- PhD in Engineering, Physics, Physical Science, or related fields with 4\+ years of experience in the semiconductor industry
OR
- Master’s degree in Engineering, Physics, Physical Science, or related fields with 6\+ years of experience in the semiconductor industry
OR
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Physics, Physical Science, or related fields with 9\+ years of experience in the semiconductor industry
Experience in the semiconductor industry includes:
- Emphasis on computational lithography, resolution enhancement technology, or mask optimization capability
- Extensive knowledge of OPC concepts and capabilities
Preferred Qualifications:
- Understanding of the latest techniques for developing and optimizing OPC solutions to support both high volume and newly developing technology nodes
This position is not eligible for Intel immigration sponsorship.
Job Type:
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Experienced Hire
Shift:
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Shift 1 (United States of America)
Primary Location:
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US, Oregon, Hillsboro
Additional Locations:
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Business group:
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Intel Foundry strives to make every facet of semiconductor manufacturing state\-of\-the\-art while delighting our customers \- from delivering cutting\-edge silicon process and packaging technology leadership for the AI era, enabling our customers to design leadership products, global manufacturing scale and supply chain, through the continuous yield improvements to advanced packaging all the way to final test and assembly. We ensure our foundry customers' products receive our utmost focus in terms of service, technology enablement and capacity commitments. Employees in the Foundry Technology Manufacturing are part of a worldwide factory network that designs, develops, manufactures, and assembly/test packages the compute devices to improve the lives of every person on Earth.
Posting Statement:
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All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, religious creed, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military and veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, gender, gender expression, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by local law, regulation, or ordinance.
Position of Trust
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N/A
Benefits
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We offer a total compensation package that ranks among the best in the industry. It consists of competitive pay, stock bonuses, and benefit programs which include health, retirement, and vacation. Find out more about the benefits of working at Intel .
Annual Salary Range for jobs which could be performed in the US: $173,660\.00\-330,340\.00 USD
The range displayed on this job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target compensation for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job\-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific compensation range for your preferred location during the hiring process.
Work Model for this Role
This role will require an on\-site presence. \* Job posting details (such as work model, location or time type) are subject to change.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Intel is committed to Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) compliance and ethical hiring practices. We do not charge any fees during our hiring process. Candidates should never be required to pay recruitment fees, medical examination fees, or any other charges as a condition of employment. If you are asked to pay any fees during our hiring process, please report this immediately to your recruiter.
Salary Context
This $173K-$330K range is above the 75th percentile for Research Engineer roles in our dataset (median: $188K across 44 roles with salary data).
View full Research Engineer salary data →Role Details
About This Role
Research Engineers bridge the gap between research and production. They implement papers, build experiment infrastructure, optimize training pipelines, and make research prototypes production-ready. They're the engineers who make research work at scale.
The role sits at a unique intersection. You need to understand the math well enough to implement novel architectures correctly, and you need the engineering chops to make them run efficiently on distributed systems. When a research scientist has a breakthrough idea, you're the person who turns it from a notebook prototype into a training pipeline that runs on 256 GPUs.
Across the 3,708 AI roles we're tracking, Research Engineer positions make up 2% of the market. At Intel Corporation, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
Research Engineer roles are growing as AI labs recognize that research velocity depends on engineering quality. The role is less competitive than Research Scientist (no PhD required), but the bar for engineering skill is very high. These roles are concentrated at major labs and well-funded startups.
What the Work Looks Like
A typical week involves: implementing a new attention mechanism from a recent paper, profiling and optimizing a training pipeline that's bottlenecked on data loading, building evaluation infrastructure for a new benchmark, debugging distributed training issues across a GPU cluster, and pair-programming with a research scientist on their latest experiment. The work is deeply technical.
Research Engineer roles are growing as AI labs recognize that research velocity depends on engineering quality. The role is less competitive than Research Scientist (no PhD required), but the bar for engineering skill is very high. These roles are concentrated at major labs and well-funded startups.
Skills in Demand for This Role
Strong software engineering fundamentals plus ML knowledge. Python, C++, and CUDA experience are common requirements. You'll need to read papers and turn ideas into working code. Distributed systems experience (especially distributed training) is highly valued. Performance optimization skills separate great candidates from good ones.
Experience with large-scale training infrastructure (FSDP, DeepSpeed, Megatron), GPU programming (CUDA, Triton), and the internals of ML frameworks (PyTorch internals, custom autograd functions) is what makes candidates stand out. The best research engineers can debug issues that span the full stack from GPU memory management to numerical precision to algorithmic correctness.
Strong postings mention the team's recent research, the infrastructure scale, and the specific technical challenges. They often list the research areas you'd support. Look for roles that emphasize both implementation quality and research understanding.
Compensation Benchmarks
Research Engineer roles pay a median of $280,000 based on 147 positions with disclosed compensation. Mid-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $200,000. This role's midpoint ($252K) sits 10% below the category median. Disclosed range: $173K to $330K.
Across all AI roles, the market median is $217,500. Top-quartile compensation starts at $272,100. The 90th percentile reaches $325,000. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Safety ($300,000) and AI Architect ($254,798). By seniority level: Entry: $120,000; Mid: $200,000; Senior: $230,000; Director: $272,150; VP: $250,000.
Intel Corporation AI Hiring
Intel Corporation has 2 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across AI/ML Engineer, Research Engineer. Positions span Austin, TX, US, Hillsboro, OR, US. Compensation range: $188K - $330K.
Location Context
Across all AI roles, 14% (508 positions) offer remote work, while 3,180 require on-site attendance. Top AI hiring metros: New York (1,045 roles, $220,000 median); San Francisco (810 roles, $277,088 median); Los Angeles (397 roles, $215,000 median).
Career Path
Common paths into Research Engineer roles include Software Engineer, ML Engineer, Research Intern.
From here, career progression typically leads toward Senior Research Engineer, Research Scientist, ML Architect.
This is one of the best entry points into AI research without a PhD. Build a strong engineering portfolio with ML projects, contribute to open-source ML frameworks, and demonstrate that you can implement complex ideas correctly and efficiently. The transition to Research Scientist is possible with published first-author work, which some research engineer roles support.
What to Expect in Interviews
Technical screens test both engineering skill and research understanding. Expect coding rounds with performance-critical implementations (GPU optimization, efficient data loading). Be prepared to discuss papers relevant to the team's research area and explain how you'd implement key ideas. System design questions focus on training infrastructure: distributed training, experiment tracking, and compute resource management.
When evaluating opportunities: Strong postings mention the team's recent research, the infrastructure scale, and the specific technical challenges. They often list the research areas you'd support. Look for roles that emphasize both implementation quality and research understanding.
AI Hiring Overview
The AI job market has 3,708 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 102 entry-level, 1,705 mid-level, 1,469 senior, and 432 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 14% of the market (508 positions). The remaining 3,180 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.
The market median for AI roles is $217,500. Top-quartile compensation starts at $272,100. The 90th percentile reaches $325,000. Highest-paying categories: AI Safety ($300,000 median, 21 roles); Research Engineer ($280,000 median, 147 roles); AI Architect ($254,798 median, 67 roles).
Research Engineer roles are growing as AI labs recognize that research velocity depends on engineering quality. The role is less competitive than Research Scientist (no PhD required), but the bar for engineering skill is very high. These roles are concentrated at major labs and well-funded startups.
The AI Job Market Today
The AI job market spans 3,708 open positions across 16 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (2,605), Data Scientist (310), AI Software Engineer (259). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.
The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (102) are outnumbered by mid-level (1,705) and senior (1,469) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 432 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.
Remote work availability sits at 14% of all AI roles (508 positions), with 3,180 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.
AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $217,500. Top-quartile roles start at $272,100, and the 90th percentile reaches $325,000. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.
Category matters for compensation. AI Safety roles lead at $300,000 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $140,000. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.
The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Python (1,890 postings), Aws (1,103 postings), Azure (877 postings), Rag (855 postings), Gcp (631 postings), Prompt Engineering (560 postings), Pytorch (545 postings), Claude (498 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
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