Wafer Handling Engineer (m/f/x)

ZEISS Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology

Enabler for smaller, more powerful, and more energy-efficient microchips

Working for tomorrow today.

Around 80 percent of all microchips worldwide are produced using ZEISS technologies. As the centerpiece of every electronically controlled system, they have become an integral part of our everyday lives – whether in smartphones, smart homes or smart factories. ZEISS is a technology leader in the field of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. With high-precision lithography optics, photomask systems and process control solutions, ZEISS enables the production of ever smaller, increasingly powerful, and more energy-efficient microchips, and thus plays a pivotal role in the age of micro- and nanoelectronics.

Semiconductor Fab Solutions (SFS) develops electron microscopy solutions for quality control in the semiconductor industry.

Become part of the team behind groundbreaking innovations like the “ZEISS MultiSEM” and help push the boundaries of technology every day. You’ll work closely with people from a wide variety of disciplines. Take on the challenge and grow through exciting and responsible assignments. Join us at our inspiring location in Oberkochen, where you’ll have the opportunity to advance your career in a forward-looking environment.

Your Role

• Take ownership of wafer handling qualification within advanced semiconductor equipment, with focus on safe, repatable, and traceable wafer movement through the complete system

• Define, execute, and improve qualification strategies for wafer transfer, alignment, buffering, handover points, mapping, and substrate tracking

• Integrate wafer handling modules into the overall system and validate the interaction between mechanics, automation, software, process modules, and system control

• Analyze wafer movement issues such as wafer slip, misalignment, transfer aborts, mapping deviations, handover instabilities, collision risks, and handling-related particle risks

• Lead structured root cause analysis for wafer handling incidents and translate findings into corrective actions, design improvements, test coverage, and lessons learned

• Establish meaningful KPIs for wafer handling performance, including transfer reliability, recovery behavior, first-pass qualification rate, throughput impact, and recurring issue rate

• Support prototype build, commissioning, factory acceptance, system qualification, production transfer, and early customer ramp-up for wafer handling relevant functions

• Create clear documentation for error patterns, problem descriptions, root causes, countermeasures, verification status, and ownership of follow-up actions

• Act as cross-functional interface between System Engineering, Automation, Mechanics, Software/System Test, Application, Process, Service, and Production

• Drive continuous improvement of wafer flow robustness, system availability, serviceability, and customer readiness

Your Profile

• University degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, Automation Engineering, Physics, Semiconductor Technology, or a comparable technical field

• Practical experience with semiconductor equipment, complex electro-mechanical systems, robotics, automation, or wafer handling functions

• Strong understanding of system qualification, integration testing, acceptance criteria, and structured verification of complex tool behavior

• Hands-on mindset in laboratory, cleanroom, prototype, or production-near environments

• Ability to analyze technical issues using data, test observations, logs, and structured problem-solving methods such as 8D, Ishikawa, FMEA, or similar approaches

• Strong communication skills and the ability to align technical decisions across interdisciplinary and international teams

• Very good English skills; German is an advantage and willingness to support commissioning, production transfer, and customer-relevant activities when needed

Your ZEISS Recruiting Team:

Oliver Reith