Thermal Engineering Technical Leader

This position requires that you commute to the San Jose, CA office 5 days a week.

We are the Service Provider (SP) Mechanical and Thermal team responsible for the design of Cisco's best high-performance, provider-class routers, the Cisco 8000 series. The Cisco 8000 series uses Cisco's ground-breaking Silicon One ASIC that delivers unmatched performance and density with feature-rich functionality.

The SP platform Mechanical Thermal group is responsible for designing and developing sophisticated electro-mechanical systems for a variety of networking products from fixed to centralized and distributed architectures with sizes ranging from 1U to 40U.

We are redefining the industry and building a new internet for AI networks and the 5G era, providing a unified, programmable silicon architecture that is the foundation of all Cisco's future routing products.

Our devices are designed to be universally adaptable across service providers and web-scale markets, designed for fixed and modular platforms. Our devices deliver high speed without sacrificing programmability, buffering, power efficiency, scale, or feature flexibility.

In this role, you'll take on the challenges of high-density optical transceivers (QSFP-DD) and high-power ASICs by investigating and implementing innovative, next-generation cooling. You'll drive innovative next-generation network devices built with Cisco Silicon One.

• Design and develop thermal solutions (air-cooled or liquid-cooled) for systems with high-power ASICs and QSFP-DD.
• Develop detailed package, board, and system-level simulations using Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) tools to simulate and analyze thermal solutions.
• Collaborate with Distinguished Hardware Engineers and Hardware Leads to architect and develop cooling solutions for next-generation high-performance routing platforms.
• Handle or perform thermal testing (including airflow, acoustic, thermocouple testing, modules, and/or platform level validations) to validate simulation models.
• Lead and mentor other thermal engineers in the group.
• Investigate and implement new innovative thermal technologies.
• Collaborate with mechanical engineers, and other multi-functional teams to identify risks, derive tradeoffs and deliver objective, data-driven solutions.
• Develop test plans and test reports and present simulation reports to the project team and management.

You will be working closely with the rest of our Mechanical/Thermal group, which is a dedicated team with foundations of innovation, collaboration, open communication, and customer success. You'll also work multi-functionally with Hardware Engineering, Product Management/Marketing, Product Operations, Global Supplier Management (GSM), External Vendors/Suppliers, Manufacturing Operations, and EMS/JDM partners.

You are a creative, adept problem solver, someone who thrives with handling difficult challenges with innovative solutions. You exhibit strong technical leadership, driven by a passion for design and innovation. As a standout colleague, you're open to collaboration, ready to listen and compromise to achieve the best product outcomes. The role requires a self-starter, capable of working independently and optimally translating broader directives into actionable tasks. You can adapt to a dynamic environment, as well as evolving requirements. Outstanding verbal and written communication skills are key, along with a strong work ethic that complements your commitment to collaboration.

• Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering with 12+ years of relevant experience OR Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering with 8+ years of relevant experience
• At least 6+ years of working experience with the design, simulation, and testing of thermal solutions for electronic devices and systems.
• Experience in system-level thermal testing and design and/or experience in optical module thermal design and testing.
• Experience with IcePak, Flotherm or other CFD analysis tools.

• PhD in Mechanical, Thermal Engineering, or relevant degree.
• 5+ years of experience in the thermal design of telecom, compute, or networking equipment.
• Knowledge and experience with sophisticated air-cooling technologies (vapor chamber and remote heat sinks, thermal interface materials, fans/fan trays).
• Experience with designing liquid cooling and/or immersion cooling systems.
• Experience with performing other analysis such as Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Data Center cooling simulations.
• Proficiency with 3D MCAD modeling tools such as PTC's Creo or equivalent experience or NX.
• Knowledge of optical transceiver module types, form factors, and requirements.

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