The Amazon Web Services (AWS) Center for Quantum Computing (CQC) is seeking a Senior Applied Scientist to research and design cryogenic control hardware for large-scale quantum processors, with an emphasis on superconducting digital circuits. Controlling and reading out orders of magnitude more qubits than today's systems demands rethinking where classical control lives and what technology implements it; you will design and model superconducting digital logic (e.g., single-flux-quantum-family circuits) and related cryogenic electronics, evaluate them against the wiring, power, and thermal budgets of a scaled system, and co-design control approaches with the qubit devices they serve. You will carry designs from concept through simulation, layout, design review, and fabrication handoff, and your evaluations will inform which control-electronics directions the organization invests in.
Key job responsibilities
• Design and simulate superconducting digital circuits and cryogenic control/readout electronics for scalable qubit control
• Develop and validate Josephson-junction circuit models, timing and margin analyses, and verification methodology for superconducting digital designs
• Quantify system-level trade-offs - wiring count, power dissipation at each cryogenic stage, latency, footprint - across candidate control architectures, and communicate recommendations
• Co-design control interfaces with qubit-device colleagues so control electronics and quantum devices are developed as one system
• Deliver design artifacts through the organization's design-request and design-review processes, including tapeout-ready layouts and verification reports
• Present results internally and, where appropriate, publish in peer-reviewed venues
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
- PhD, or Master's degree and 7+ years of applied research experience
- Experience programming in Java, C++, Python or related language
- Experience in patents or publications at top-tier peer-reviewed conferences or journals
- Experience with circuit design and simulation
- Familiarity with superconducting qubit control and readout - pulse generation, multiplexed readout, feedback latency requirements
- Experience designing superconducting digital circuits (RSFQ/ERSFQ, adiabatic quantum phase parametron, or related single-flux-quantum logic families), including Josephson-junction circuit simulation and margin analysis
- Experience with EDA flows for custom circuit design - schematic capture, layout, physical verification, and working against a process design kit
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Knowledge of cryogenic electronics more broadly: cryo-CMOS, low-temperature amplifiers and mixers, thermal and power budgeting across refrigerator stages
- Experience with microwave engineering and signal integrity in dense cryogenic interconnect
- Experience taking chips through fabrication and correlating measured circuit behavior with design models
- Familiarity with quantum error correction decoding and the classical-processing requirements it places on control systems
The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.
USA, CA, San Francisco - 192,200.00 - 260,000.00 USD annually
