Field Application Engineer

Position Overview

The Field Application Engineer (FAE) for 32-bit RISC microcontrollers (e.g., RISC-V or ARM Cortex-M based) with Linux integration plays a critical role in supporting customers in the design, development, and deployment of embedded systems. This position bridges the gap between sales, marketing, and technical teams to provide hands-on technical expertise for microcontroller products that support real-time operating systems (RTOS) and embedded Linux distributions. The role focuses on assisting clients in industries such as IoT, automotive, consumer electronics, industrial automation, and edge computing, where 32-bit RISC architectures enable efficient, low-power processing with Linux for advanced features like networking, AI acceleration, and multimedia.

As an FAE, you will act as the primary technical liaison for customers integrating 32-bit RISC MCUs (e.g., RV32I cores or ARM Cortex-M series) into their products, ensuring seamless Linux porting, driver development, and optimization. This is a customer-facing role requiring up to 50% travel to client sites, trade shows, and regional offices.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Customer Support: Provide expert guidance on selecting, integrating, and troubleshooting 32-bit RISC microcontrollers in customer designs. This includes advising on hardware-software co-design, peripheral configuration (e.g., GPIO, UART, SPI, I2C), and power management for low-power applications.

Embedded Linux Integration: Assist customers in porting and customizing Linux kernels to 32-bit RISC platforms. Develop or debug device drivers, bootloaders (e.g., U-Boot), and filesystem configurations for MCU-based systems running Linux, ensuring compatibility with RISC instruction sets like RV32IMC.

Design Reviews and Prototyping: Conduct design reviews, proof-of-concept demonstrations, and rapid prototyping using development boards

Training and Demos: Deliver technical presentations, workshops, and hands-on training sessions on MCU features, Linux enablement, and best practices. Create reference designs and application notes for 32-bit RISC ecosystems, including integration with sensors, wireless modules, and AI accelerators.

Issue Resolution and Escalation: Diagnose and resolve complex technical issues related to hardware-software interactions, such as interrupt handling, memory management, and Linux compatibility on RISC architectures. Escalate bugs to R&D teams and track resolutions.

Market Feedback and Collaboration: Gather customer requirements and feedback to inform product roadmaps. Collaborate with sales to drive adoption of MCU products in Linux-enabled applications, contributing to win/loss analysis and competitive positioning.

Documentation and Tools: Maintain technical documentation, contribute to knowledge bases.

Required Qualifications and Skills

Education:

Bachelors degree in electronics engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field. A masters or relevant certifications is a plus.

Experience:

2-5+ years in embedded systems, with direct hands-on experience in 32-bit RISC microcontrollers (e.g., RISC-V RV32, ARM Cortex-M0/M3/M4).

Technical Expertise:

• Proficiency in C/C++ for bare-metal and Linux-based firmware development.
• Strong knowledge of RISC architectures (e.g., RV32I base ISA, extensions like M/A/C for multiply, atomic, and compressed instructions).

Soft Skills:

Excellent communication and presentation skills for interacting with technical and non-technical stakeholders. Ability to work independently in fast-paced, customer-driven environments. Willingness to travel and adapt to diverse project needs.

Preferred Skills:

• Yocto, Buildroot, GCC cross-compilers, GDB debugging, and real-time patches (e.g., PREEMPT-RT).
• Understanding of 32-bit vs. 64-bit Linux compatibility, including dynamic XLEN switching for RISC-V.