Research Scientist Engineer Jobs

Ciena is committed to our people-first philosophy. Our teams enjoy a culture focused on prioritizing a personalized and flexible work environment that empowers an individual’s passions, growth, wellbeing and belonging. We’re a technology company that leads with our humanity—driving our business priorities alongside meaningful social, community, and societal impact.
Why Ciena

• We realize time away to recharge is non-negotiable. We offer flexible paid time off!
• Great work deserves recognition. We have a robust recognition program, with ongoing and enhanced awards for exemplary performance.
• We know that financial security is important. We offer competitive salaries and incentive programs, RSU’s (job level specific) and an employee share option purchase program.
• We are committed to employee development, offering tuition reimbursement and a variety of in-house learning and mentorship opportunities.
• We believe an inclusive, diverse and barrier-free work environment makes for empowered and committed employees.
• We recognize the importance of well-being and offer programs and benefits to support and sustain the mental and physical health of our employees and their families and also offer a variety of paid family leave programs.
• We are big proponents of life-work integration and provide the flexibility and tools to make it a reality with remote work and potentially, part-time work.

What Does Ciena Expect of You?

• Initiative – you’re a self-starter who works with limited direction and is committed to delivering against aggressive deadlines.
• Agility – you are readily able to make key decisions and manage competing and ever-changing account priorities.
• Communication expertise – you possess the ability to influence and tailor your message and ideas to ensure understanding and agreement.
• Problem solver – with the ability to gather and understand complex system requirements and translate them into discrete signal processing features.
• The flexibility to work independently and as part of a broader team – you thrive in a multi-disciplinary team environment, but are comfortable working independently as required.
• Relationship builder – with an innate ability to influence, you’re able to get work done through others.

How You Will Contribute
Ciena is a leading supplier of optical line and transmission equipment. Join a diverse science and engineering team that invents, designs, and verifies Ciena’s next coherent transceivers.
Reporting to Senior Director, Optical Engineering and as a member of the WaveLogic science team you will contribute by means your ideation, design, modelling and coding skills in communication theory, statistics, digital signal processing, forward error correction, optical physics and/or optical transmission & performance measurements. We provide a learning environment that enables rapid progression to contributing membership in the team.

• DSP and optical performance design responsibilities
• Create and analyze digital algorithms for next-generation high-speed optical communication systems.
• Work closely with the Modem Signal Processing Team on the implementation of digital algorithms in Ciena products.

General Activities

• Review and communicate designs and solutions with- and to- the wider development team
• Support development and testing at 800 Gb/s and beyond in the lab.
• Learn new mathematical areas.
• Create innovative solutions that can be implemented in CMOS.
• Model in MATLAB.
• Analyze questions in your areas of knowledge which would be a subset of: optical physics, communications theory, probability, control theory, and high-speed algorithms.
• Independently plan and schedule work and document results.

Experience

• Post-graduate degree in Math, Physics, or Engineering with focus on optical physics and quantum electronics, signal processing, communications, statistics and control theory.
• Create and analyze forward error correction (FEC) designs for next-generation high-speed optical communication systems.
• Must have MATLAB experience.
• Work closely with the Modem Signal Processing Team on the implementation of digital algorithms in Ciena products.
• C, C++, Python experience would be an asset.
• Forward error correction design responsibilities

General Activities

• Analyze challenging problems in your areas of knowledge which would be a subset of: coding theory, statistics, signal processing, communications theory, control theory, high-speed algorithms, and optical physics.
• Create innovative solutions that can be implemented in CMOS.
• Independently plan and schedule work.
• Don’t know optical physics? No problem – you can learn it here!
• Model in MATLAB.
• Learn new mathematical areas.

Experience

• Different types of FEC: LDPC, algebraic (RS, BCH, RM), Polar codes
• C, C++, MATLAB experience would be an asset.
• Analyze, document, communicate, and present the results from complex experiments and large data sets.
• Support other Ciena teams through automation and analysis of optical experiments.
• Design and run experiments to evaluate DSP algorithms and hardware for next-generation high-speed optical communication systems.
• Optical transmission and performance measurement responsibilities
• Masters/PhD with background in coding theory and digital communications

General Activities

• Test at 800 Gb/s and beyond in the lab.
• Analyze problems in your specific areas of knowledge, which would be a subset of: optical physics, communications theory, probability, and high-speed/RF electronics.
• Advanced technology demonstrations for customers.
• Automate, analyze, and visualize experimental data in MATLAB.
• Create and perform simulations of experiments then validate predictions via measurement.
• Create innovative solutions for experimental issues.
• Independently plan and schedule work.

Experience

• Must have MATLAB experience.
• Post-graduate degree in Math, Physics, or Engineering with focus on optical physics, DSP, or communications.
• Must have experience working in a lab environment with optical and/or RF technologies.
• Python experience is an asset.

Overall: Collaboration with stakeholders

• Interface and collaborate with DSP, hardware, firmware, electro-optic, systems and lab teams.
• Provide feedback & suggestions on existing designs; contribute ideas to improve design procedures.
• Share expertise and best practices with lab teams.

Areas of Impact

• Verified models and supporting measurements that predict modem performance and define modem specifications, respectively.
• Key DSP technology to enable state-of-the-art coherent optical modem and DWDM systems.

At Ciena, we are committed to building and fostering an environment in which our employees feel respected, valued, and heard. Ciena values the diversity of its workforce and respects its employees as individuals. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination.
If contacted in relation to a job opportunity, please advise Ciena of any accommodation measures you may require.