Principal Firmware Engineer (FPGA) – Medical Devices

About the role

Alcon is seeking a Principal Firmware Engineer (FPGA) to lead the development of cutting‑edge firmware for advanced ophthalmic surgical systems. Based in Erlangen, Germany, you will work within the Surgical R&D Engineering Organization to deliver high‑quality, regulatory‑compliant medical devices that improve patients' vision.

Key responsibilities

• Define architecture, requirements and technical design for next‑generation FPGA‑based platforms.
• Develop and maintain FPGA firmware using VHDL and/or SystemVerilog, including timing‑critical video processing pipelines and control logic.
• Drive hardware‑firmware integration, collaborating with system, hardware, software and verification teams.
• Define and execute verification and validation strategies, enforcing coding standards, linting rules, testing frameworks and quality gates.
• Support modern CI/CD workflows, development automation and AI‑enabled engineering practices while ensuring compliance with medical device regulations.

Required profile

• Bachelor's, Master’s or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Computer Engineering or related field.
• Residence within commuting distance of Erlangen or willingness to relocate.
• Fluent English and intermediate German communication skills.
• Minimum 7 years of FPGA and firmware development experience, including at least 2 years in a technical leadership role.
• Expert knowledge of FPGA architecture, digital design and system‑level firmware development.

Required skills

• VHDL and/or SystemVerilog.
• FPGA architecture and digital design.
• Hands‑on experience with Xilinx/AMD Zynq UltraScale+ SoC, AXI interconnect, PS/DDR integration and Vivado toolchain.
• Hardware‑firmware integration.
• Verification and validation methodologies.
• CI/CD workflow implementation.