Applications Engineer

Date:  13 Nov 2025
Location: 

Bristol, GB, BS35 4GG

Job Function:  Technical
Business Unit:  Plasma Technology

 

We have a fantastic permanent opportunity for an Applications Engineer in Severn Beach, Bristol. This position plays a pivotal role within the Applications Development team, focusing on the advancement of Etch and Deposition processes, primarily leveraging CVD/ALD techniques, ICP, or atomic layer etching. You will take charge as the process engineer on strategic projects, driving innovation to elevate our product offerings ahead of market trends.

 

During your first three years, you will have the exciting opportunity to be seconded to a project in Singapore, spending up to three months there annually. This is a dynamic, hands-on role located within a semiconductor lab, where you'll collaborate closely with project engineers, product managers, and hardware development teams.

 

Plasma Technology is dedicated to enhancing your professional expertise and customer relationship skills, reinforcing our reputation as leading industry experts. This role opens the door to a wealth of fascinating opportunities.

 

Key Responsibilities:

  • Maintain progress in your allocated projects at the level necessary to achieve successful outcomes.
  • Collaborate with your team leader in planning and understanding projects and agreeing their schedules along with the allocated project manager.
  • Provide frequent and regular progress updates on ongoing projects and flag obstacles as they become apparent.
  • Ensure project work is in the ‘house style’ and that output is in a standard format, complies with company quality, as well as other regulatory and compliance standards.
  • Carry out hardware development and improvement activities under the guidance of a hardware specialist.
  • Gain and contribute specialist understanding of critical market or application areas to inform the understanding of problems to address, their solutions and value to the busines.
  • Liaise with Product managers and the business development teams, and extract information on product performance requirements in order to produce satisfactory samples and validate hardware specifications.
  • Where necessary provide technical process expertise for generating marketing literature and supporting conferences.
  • Develop an excellent working knowledge of the technology to facilitate fault finding and root cause analysis on processing results or equipment performance to deliver optimised processes and hardware performance.

 

Education / Qualifications:

  • A relevant science or engineering degree.

Diserable:

  • Further degree in a related topic.
  • Experience in the semiconductor industry or relevant experience in an academic institution

 

Professional Skills/ Abilities:

  • Practical experimentation.
  • Typical lab measuring skills (e.g. SEMs, ellipsometry etc.).
  • Experience in one of the following: III-V photonics, RF devices, Quantum devices, Sustainability in processing, SiC power devices.
  • Comfortable living for extended periods in a foreign country.

Desirable experience in at least one of the following areas: Plasma etching, Plasma deposition or Cleanroom technique.

 

Personal Qualities:

  • Self-starting, diligent and enthusiastic. A professional approach to working independently and managing your own time.
  • Comfortable with giving instruction and encouraging and ensuring compliance.
  • Comfortable with delegation and supervision.
  • Highly innovative and good lateral thinking skills for identifying opportunities for technology development applications.
  • Demonstrates awareness of customer needs (internal and external).
  • Focused on quality of results and rigour in experimentation.
  • Good diagnostic skills and problem-solving abilities. Positive and enthusiastic attitude to technical challenges, and flexibility to cope effectively with changes to specifications or priorities.
  • Technical leadership qualities.
  • Team player who makes the best use of the contributions that can be made by others, and has the ability to work constructively with others.
  • Excellent written and oral communication. Able to articulate, present and report on technical or complex issues clearly and succinctly. 

 

At Oxford Instruments Plasma Technology, we provide tools for the engineering of micro- and nano-structures, with customers using our process solutions to research and produce materials and semiconductors vital for everything from medical devices and diagnostics, to electric cars and quantum computers.

 

Benefits

In addition to a competitive starting salary, structured career development opportunities, and a good work-life balance, Oxford Instruments offers 25 days annual leave, early finish on Fridays, private healthcare, a share incentive plan, a defined contribution Group Personal Pension Plan, and a flexible benefits package that you can tailor to your own requirements

 

#LI-Hybrid #LI-AC1

 

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability. We encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and would ask you to get in touch if you are concerned about any barriers you feel you may be facing in your application process with us

 

Note to recruitment agencies: Oxford Instruments operates a Preferred Supplier List, and we do not accept unsolicited agency CVs. Please do not forward candidate details in response to this advert, or to any Oxford Instruments employees or other company locations. Oxford Instruments is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited CVs.