Natcast (short for The National Center for the Advancement of Semiconductor Technology) is a new, purpose-built, non-profit entity created to operate the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC) consortium, established by the CHIPS Act of the U.S. government.
Working at Natcast represents an opportunity to help extend America’s leadership in semiconductor technology, significantly reduce the time and cost of moving from idea to commercialization, and build and sustain a semiconductor workforce development ecosystem.
These efforts to advance semiconductor technology and seed new industries built on the capabilities of a wide range of advanced chips hold the potential to benefit the country and the world for generations to come.
Research Scientist
In this role, you will advance the integration of artificial intelligence into semiconductor R&D by developing explainable, physics-informed, and multimodal AI models. Your research will enable breakthrough capabilities in fault isolation, sub-micron feature detection, and root-cause analysis for next-generation 2.5D/3D advanced packaging technologies.
You will work on AI model development that fuses multiple imaging modalities (e.g., SEM, X-ray CT, SAM, Optical) to overcome limitations of single-mode inspection, and you will collaborate with experts from academia, industry, and government to help develop scalable, interoperable solutions.
Every day you will push the boundaries of machine learning applications, developing innovative solutions to challenges in semiconductor failure analysis and fault isolation while enhancing America's technological capabilities.
To thrive in this role, you must combine deep AI expertise with an understanding of semiconductor inspection and physics, demonstrating both theoretical insight and hands-on implementation experience in cutting-edge ML systems.
Natcast (short for The National Center for the Advancement of Semiconductor Technology) is a new, purpose-built, non-profit entity created to operate the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC) consortium, established by the CHIPS Act of the U.S. government.
Working at Natcast represents an opportunity to help extend America’s leadership in semiconductor technology, significantly reduce the time and cost of moving from idea to commercialization, and build and sustain a semiconductor workforce development ecosystem.
These efforts to advance semiconductor technology and seed new industries built on the capabilities of a wide range of advanced chips hold the potential to benefit the country and the world for generations to come.
Key Responsibilities
Research and Development
Lead AI/ML research focused on failure analysis and localization, defect detection in advanced packaging.
Design and develop multimodal fusion models that integrate various modalities.
Apply and extend Physics-Informed Neural Networks (PINNs) to incorporate domain knowledge and enhance model generalization.
Leverage large language models (LLMs) to automate report generation, annotation, and image interpretation.
Create standardized, annotated defect datasets and benchmark tools to support model training and validation.
Technical Leadership
Develop methodologies for AI validation and explainability, including SHAP, LIME, and other XAI tools.
Optimize AI frameworks for high-resolution data and high-performance computing environments.
Contribute to impactful technical publications and conference presentations.
Interface with tool vendors and researchers to support real-world deployment and feedback.
Innovation and Collaboration
Drive strategic innovation within NATCAST’s roadmap-aligned R&D ecosystem.
Engage with semiconductor equipment manufacturers, standards bodies (e.g., NIST), and academic partners.
Support development of interoperable tools and FAIR-compliant datasets to accelerate adoption.
Identify key scientific and technological challenges in inspection for heterogeneous integration and propose novel ML-based approaches to solve them.
Required Skills and Qualifications
Academic and Research Credentials
Ph.D. (or exceptional M.S. with significant experience) in AI, Machine Learning, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field
Demonstrated record of AI/ML research in applied or scientific domains
Strong publication track record in top-tier ML, computer vision, or semiconductor research venues
Technical Expertise
Proficient in Python and ML libraries such as PyTorch or TensorFlow
Experience with multimodal learning, computer vision, or physics-informed models
Familiarity with high-performance computing and GPU acceleration
Strong skills in model interpretability, benchmarking, and dataset management
Preferred Additional Capabilities
Experience working with semiconductor inspection or process data (e.g., SEM, X-ray CT)
Exposure to failure analysis tools or reliability engineering
Prior industry collaboration, open-source project contributions, or technology transfer experience
Natcast is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, gender, gender expression, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, military status, or any protected attribute. We encourage qualified candidates from all backgrounds to apply and join us in our mission. If you require accommodation at any stage of the application process due to a disability, please let us know.
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