About the Company
Cnuic Technologies is a deep-tech company based in Edinburgh. We are building next-generation optical systems aimed at pushing the limits of precision manufacturing and nanoscale engineering. We are backed by substantial venture capital and have received grant support from several UK innovation agencies.
We are a small, focused team working on genuinely difficult hardware problems. The work is fast-paced and collaborative, and we give engineers the space and resources to do serious technical work. If you want to build something from the ground up and care deeply about getting the physics right, this is a good place to be.
About the Role
This is a principal-level process engineering role sitting at the boundary between simulation and physical hardware. Your job is to take nanophotonic structures that exist as designs and models and turn them into real, measurable devices on a wafer. You will spend significant time in our advanced cleanroom facility and will own the full nanofabrication development cycle from first attempts through to repeatable, documented process flows.
The work involves developing patterning and pattern transfer processes for sub-micron and nanoscale structures, establishing thin-film deposition recipes, and refining etch processes to meet tight geometric tolerances. Because our platform depends on precisely engineered light-matter interactions, process fidelity is critical. Structures that deviate from design even modestly can produce meaningfully different optical behaviour, so you will need to understand the physics well enough to diagnose whether a performance issue originates in the process or the design.
Fabrication without metrology is guesswork, so you will also build and maintain the inspection and measurement protocols that tell us whether a process is working. This means being fluent with SEM, AFM, ellipsometry, and profilometry, and being rigorous about using that data to drive process improvement rather than just logging it.
You will write the SOPs, not just follow them. Over time you will build a process library that the team can rely on and iterate from.
About You
General
- You are methodical and precise, but you also move quickly when it matters and are comfortable making decisions under uncertainty.
- You document your work thoroughly and can turn a dense set of experimental results into a clear summary for colleagues from other disciplines.
- You present process data and fabrication results with confidence and engage constructively with critical feedback.
- You are used to a fast-moving environment where experimental priorities shift as new data comes in, and you adapt without losing rigour.
Technical Requirements
Nanofabrication
- Proven cleanroom experience with sub-micron patterning, including direct-write techniques (electron beam lithography or maskless UV), high-resolution photolithography, and nanoimprint lithography.
- Strong practical knowledge of dry etch processes, including RIE and ICP-RIE, with experience optimising etch selectivity, anisotropy, and sidewall profile for nanoscale features.
- Hands-on experience with physical vapour deposition methods, including sputtering and thermal or e-beam evaporation, as well as atomic layer deposition (ALD) for conformal dielectric films.
- Experience with lift-off processes and wet etching as complementary patterning steps.
Metrology and Characterisation
- Confident, regular use of SEM for critical dimension measurement and cross-sectional analysis of fabricated nanostructures.
- Experience with AFM for surface roughness and topography characterisation.
- Working knowledge of ellipsometry and profilometry for thin-film thickness and optical property measurement.
- Familiarity with FTIR or visible spectrometry for optical performance validation of fabricated devices is an advantage.
Applied Physics
- A solid grounding in the optical physics relevant to the structures you will be fabricating, particularly how coherent light interacts with structured materials and how nonlinear or resonant phenomena at the microscopic scale depend on geometric precision.
- Enough understanding of the electromagnetic behaviour of nanostructures to have a productive technical conversation with the optical simulation team and to interpret how process variation affects device performance.
Layout and Simulation
- Experience using layout editors (such as KLayout, L-Edit, or equivalent) to translate design requirements into fabrication-ready geometry files.
- Familiarity with electromagnetic simulation tools such as Lumerical FDTD or COMSOL is useful for understanding how your process choices feed back into optical performance.
- Python or MATLAB scripting for process data analysis and automated characterisation workflows.
Desirable Experience
- Experience developing processes for dielectric metasurface structures, including TiO2, Si, or GaN on relevant substrates.
- Statistical process control (SPC) and process capability analysis, particularly in a context where you have been responsible for transitioning a process from R&D to repeatable production.
- Multiphysics simulation experience using COMSOL for assessing the thermal or mechanical sensitivity of fabricated structures.
- A track record of published work or equivalent industry output in nanofabrication or process development.
Benefits & Compensation
We offer a competitive salary appropriate to a principal-level role. In addition:
- Equity: A meaningful allocation from our option pool, reflecting the foundational nature of this hire.
- Insurance benefits: Standard comprehensive coverage.
- Office: A well-equipped, modern workspace in West Edinburgh, designed for both focused individual work and team collaboration, with dedicated areas to step away and recharge.
