Physical Design Lead/Manager

As a Physical Design Lead/Manager at Omni Design, you'll be responsible for owning the physical implementation of innovative Mixed-Signal SOCs. Your main duties will include defining physical implementation methodologies, collaborating with cross-functional teams including architecture and CAD, and ensuring high-quality designs are delivered. You will also handle interactions with foundries regarding technology and schedules, all while verifying designs across various SOC hierarchy levels.

To qualify for the Physical Design Lead/Manager role at Omni Design, you need at least 8 years of experience in physical design within SOCs and 3 years of project management and team leadership experience. Essential technical skills include floorplanning, power planning, and expertise in UPF methodology. Familiarity with cadences or Synopsys RTL-to-GDSII flows is preferred, and strong programming skills in TCL, Perl, or Python are a must.

A Physical Design Lead/Manager at Omni Design must have strong programming skills, specifically in TCL, Perl, or Python. These programming capabilities are essential for setting up EDA tools and developing necessary scripts to streamline processes such as floor planning, layout, and verification checks.

To ensure successful chip tape-outs at Omni Design, a Physical Design Lead/Manager is responsible for executing fundamental steps such as managing the floor plan and layout, developing UPF methodology, conducting various verification checks (DRC, ERC, LVS, etc.), and coordinating with the foundry. By closely overseeing every stage of the design and implementation process, they can mitigate potential issues and facilitate a smooth tape-out execution.

Leadership qualities essential for a Physical Design Lead/Manager at Omni Design include the ability to mentor and develop a skilled team, effective communication for collaborating with cross-functional groups, and project management skills to ensure deadlines are met. Passion for innovation and staying updated with the latest technologies are also critical to inspire your team and drive project success.

When discussing your experience with floorplanning, it's beneficial to highlight specific projects you've worked on, the challenges faced, and how your decisions led to successful layout outcomes. Emphasize how you balance performance metrics with design constraints and how you collaborate with other teams during this process.

Timing closure is critical for performance, so discuss your systematic approach, such as utilizing static timing analysis tools, back-end optimization strategies, and your collaborative efforts with the design team. Share specific examples when you resolved timing issues to meet project deadlines.

In responding to this, mention the various physical verification methods you've utilized, such as DRC and LVS checks, and explain their importance in ensuring design integrity and manufacturability. You can also discuss how you typically handle and follow up on any errors identified during verification.

Share a specific project that had notable challenges, detailing your role and the strategies you employed to overcome obstacles. Discuss the impact of your leadership on the team and how your technical skills contributed to the project's success.

Discuss your experience with double patterning processes, especially if you've worked on nodes under 40nm. Explain how you've applied these techniques in past projects and the lessons learned to optimize yield and performance.

Mention specific mentoring practices you have implemented to guide junior engineers. This may include regular check-ins, providing technical resources, facilitating skill-building workshops, or hands-on project collaboration. Highlight the positive outcomes from your mentoring approach.

Talk about project management strategies you use, such as establishing clear milestones, consistency in communication with stakeholders, risk assessments, and using specific tools or software to track progress. Share how these strategies help you meet deadlines and achieve project goals.

Detail how power and clock planning are essential for performance and efficiency in SOC designs. Provide insights into how you approach power grid design and clock distribution in your past roles, ensuring minimal crosstalk and optimized power consumption.

Discuss your experience in collaborating with foundries, including how you manage communication regarding technology requirements and schedules. Provide examples of negotiations or discussions that led to successful outcomes for projects.

Share your familiarity with various EDA tools you've used in RTL-to-GDSII flows, such as those from Cadence or Synopsys. Elaborate on your experience with these tools in project scenarios, how you utilized them for layout verification, and troubleshooting any issues that arose.