Principal FPGA Engineer in LN6, North Hykeham, Lincolnshire

Principal FPGA Engineer – North Hykeham (LN6) – Permanent – Hybrid

Up to £70,000 depending on experience.

We’re growing our Electronic Warfare Operations Support Group (EWOS), a team of over 60 specialists from a wide range of backgrounds.

Our engineers, scientists, and ex‑military personnel work together to help our customers achieve the true operational potential and keep their people and platforms safe.

About the Role

As part of this growth, MASS is looking for a Principal FPGA Engineer to join our modelling team in Lincoln, supporting the delivery of technical excellence on a large, cutting‑edge System‑of‑Systems programme.

This is a collaborative, hands‑on role, suited to someone with strong experience in FPGA design and a passion for developing signal processing systems for complex, real‑world challenges.

You’ll work closely, with cross‑functional teams, acting as a technical lead in the design and delivery of systems that include RF signal chains, high‑speed digital interfaces, and real‑time DSP.

Your work will influence key architectural decisions, address integration challenges, and help shape the development of reconfigurable hardware platforms for use in mission‑critical environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and implement advanced FPGA architectures for RF signal processing, high‑throughput data handling, and real‑time logic.
• Develop for AMD/Xilinx RFSo Cs (e. g., Zynq Ultra Scale+) and Intel FPGAs (e. g., Agilex), including integration with high‑speed ADCs/DACs.
• Collaborate with systems, RF, embedded software, and verification engineers to ensure end‑to‑end performance and compliance.
• Support test and lab evaluation using signal generators, spectrum analyzers, and oscilloscopes.
• Lead or contribute to the implementation of designs using VHDL, System Verilog, and MATLAB/Simulink HDL Coder.
• Develop low‑level C software for FPGA bring‑up, test, and integration.
• Use industry‑standard tools such as Vivado, Quartus, and Model Sim for simulation, synthesis, and implementation.
• Drive design verification, unit testing, and documentation to ensure high‑reliability deployment.
• Act as a technical expert in reviews, solution development, and internal consultation across teams.

Essential Experience

• Proven track record in delivering FPGA designs for real‑time, high‑speed, or RF‑centric systems.
• Proficiency in VHDL, System Verilog, and embedded C for FPGA‑host integration, control, and testing.
• Experience with MATLAB/Simulink and HDL Coder for algorithm‑to‑hardware workflows.
• Proven ability to develop and deploy on Xilinx RFSo C (e. g., Zynq Ultra Scale+) and/or Intel Agilex/Stratix platforms.
• Expertise with Vivado, Quartus, constraint management, simulation, and timing closure for multi‑clock, high‑throughput designs.

Desirable Experience

• Experience working with embedded Linux, bare‑metal C drivers, or FPGA‑based system integration.
• Familiarity with AXI interfaces, memory interfaces, JESD204B/C, or high‑speed ADC/DAC integration.
• Experience designing streaming architectures using AXI4‑Stream, DMA, and memory buffers (e. g., BRAM, URAM).
• Exposure to real‑time signal playback/recording systems, or hardware‑in‑the‑loop (HIL) test environments.
• Knowledge of bitstream encryption, secure boot, or anti‑tamper features in FPGA‑based systems.
• Knowledge of data framing, tagging, and high‑throughput IQ data handling.
• Experience working with synthetic electromagnetic environments and their associated software and hardware requirements and limitations.
• Eligibility Requirements
• A UK citizen and eligible to work in the UK.
• Eligible to obtain and maintain a UK Government SC‑level security clearance.
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