Principal Quality Engineer

Role Overview

As a Principal Quality Engineer at Astera Labs, you will be a key individual contributor driving product and process quality across our semiconductor connectivity product lines. You will own end-to-end quality engineering activities — from new product introduction and process control through field quality and supplier performance — ensuring our products meet the highest reliability and quality standards demanded by the world's leading cloud and AI infrastructure providers.

Key Responsibilities

• Product Quality & Reliability: Lead technical investigations of field returns, warranty claims, and reliability failures for semiconductor products; coordinate root-cause analysis (8D, 5-Why, Ishikawa) and drive corrective and preventive actions (CAPA) to closure in partnership with design, validation, and applications engineering teams.
• New Product Introduction (NPI): Partner with design, package, and manufacturing teams during NPI to define quality gates, review FMEAs (Design & Process), establish control plans, and ensure product meets qualification and reliability requirements prior to production ramp.
• Process Quality & Control: Develop, document, and implement in-process quality controls including Statistical Process Control (SPC), measurement system analysis (MSA), and go/no-go checkpoints to monitor and improve yield and defect rates across manufacturing operations.
• Supplier Quality: Support supplier quality activities including conducting supplier audits, tracking supplier scorecards, issuing Supplier Corrective Action Requests (SCARs), and monitoring incoming quality for key semiconductor and substrate suppliers.
• Quality Management System (QMS): Contribute to the maintenance and continuous improvement of the ISO 9001 QMS; author and review procedures, work instructions, and audit reports to ensure alignment across the organization.
• Data Analysis & Metrics: Define, track, and report key quality KPIs (PPM, DPMO, warranty cost, MTBF, supplier defect rates) to engineering and operations leadership; leverage data-driven insights to prioritize quality improvement efforts.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Serve as the quality engineering point of contact across design, validation, operations, and customer-facing teams; support Field Application Engineers (FAEs) with technical quality information and ensure customer issues are driven to resolution.
• Quality Improvement: Apply Lean, Six Sigma, and other quality improvement methodologies to identify and eliminate waste, reduce variation, and improve overall product reliability and yield.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, or a closely related technical discipline
• 8+ years of experience in quality engineering within the semiconductor, electronics, or precision manufacturing industry
• Hands-on experience with quality tools including FMEA (Design & Process), SPC, MSA, DOE, and control plans
• Solid understanding of ISO 9001 quality management systems and their implementation
• Experience driving root-cause analysis and corrective action processes (8D, CAPA, SCAR)
• Familiarity with semiconductor product qualification, reliability testing, and JEDEC/IPC standards
• Strong analytical skills with proficiency in data analysis tools (Excel, Minitab, Python, or equivalent)
• Excellent cross-functional communication skills with the ability to work effectively across engineering, operations, and customer-facing teams

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Engineering or a related technical field
• Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification; ASQ CQE or CQM credential
• Experience in a fabless semiconductor company with exposure to OSAT, substrate, or test operations
• Familiarity with automotive, data center, or hyperscale customer quality requirements
• Experience with reliability testing methodologies (HTOL, HAST, THB, TC) and failure analysis techniques
• Knowledge of JEDEC reliability standards (JESD47, JESD22 series) and IPC specifications
• Proficiency in JMP, Minitab, or Python/R for statistical quality analysis
• Track record of presenting quality data and improvement plans to senior engineering or operations leadership

Compensation

Your base salary will be determined based on your location, experience, and the pay of employees in similar positions. You will also be eligible for equity and benefits. Astera Labs is committed to fair and equitable pay practices.

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