Enzian Development Engineer

100%, Zurich, fixed-term

The Institute of Computing Platforms of the Department of Computer Science is a research group focused on computer systems and software systems in general. The research in the group encompasses topics such as cloud computing architecture, operating systems, networks, distributed systems, data management, and system support for machine learning and data science. Currently the group has 4 faculty, 4 administrators, 1 Systems Engineer, 1 lecturer, 10 senior researchers, and 33 doctoral students. The group is very international with a relatively high turnaround in personnel as students graduate and new students join the group.

Project background

The Enzian project involves hardware design in collaboration with companies, a wide range of contributions from within ETH (ranging from students to full-time software engineers) and from external collaborators, both companies and universities. Moreover, we are about to design the next generation of Enzian hardware with industry partners. Finally, Enzian is used both inside and outside ETH for cutting-edge research, and is the core of a growing user community. This job will drive the development of both this community and the research platform itself.

Job description

We are looking for a candidate to fill a leadership role in maintaining and further developing the Enzian research platform, a novel computer system tightly couple a server-class CPU and large FPGA built in the Institute for Computing Platforms. This is a demanding position comprising several different, but closely related, areas.

First is leading local development of the software/hardware support stack for the Enzian platform, coordinating the application of formal methods techniques to the Enzian infrastructure and integrating and automating FPGA development (Vitis, Vivado) with OS and low-level systems programming (C, Rust). This necessarily entails managing and directing contributions from in-house software engineering staff (currently one senior software engineer, with 1-3 more expected), students and other academics, and external collaborators both in industry and academia.

Second is taking a lead role in supporting and developing the existing external Enzian user community, coordinating external communication on Enzian developments, and organizing workshops and hackathons. The successful candidate will have take responsibility for code releases, and supervising the QA process, as well as assessing external pull requests and support questions.

Third is coordinating the local Enzian research infrastructure. The successful candidate will be the primary point of contact with the department's Informatics Support Group and ETH Informatikdienst. The role includes specification and procurement/purchase of infrastructure components and equipment, and the creation of a remote access system to Enzian machines to facilitate use by external collaborators.

The final role is to drive the design and implementation of the successor to the current Enzian platform (v3), including negotiating agreements with industry partners and collaborators (AMD/Xilinx, ARM, etc.) and managing ongoing company relationships, plus supervising implementation in-house of the coherence protocol (the key differentiating component of the platform).

Your profile

• Master's Degree in Computer Science or Computer Engineering
• Fluent technical writing skills in English
• Extensive experience with formal methods, include Isabelle/HOL or other interactive theorem provers.
• Thorough knowledge of computer hardware design and workflow.
• Familiarity with Altium CAD tools, Verilog, and VHDL languages.
• Experience building significant FPGA projects using Xilinx Vivado and Vitis.
• Deep knowledge of operating system design and implementation, including microkernels and Linux.
• Strong skills in low-level systems programming, including C and assembler.
• Experience with physical machine room configuration, cabling, power, and network IP configuration.

Your workplace

Your workplace

We offer

We offer you an exciting opportunity to develop and showcase your expertise in a dynamic and international research environment. 

The position is non-permanent: The term of appointment is initially 2 years and may be renewed. ETH Zurich is a family-friendly employer with excellent working conditions. You can look forward to attractive offers and benefits  and a workplace in the centre of Zurich. 

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Curious? So are we.

We look forward to receiving your online application with the following documents:

• CV
• Letter of interest detailing your skills and motivation
• References

Please note that we exclusively accept applications submitted through our online application portal. Applications via email or postal services will not be considered.

Further information about the Institute for Computing Platforms can be found on our website www.systems.ethz.ch . Questions regarding the position should be directed to Prof. Timothy Roscoe, email troscoe@inf.ethz.ch (no applications).

For recruitment services the GTC of ETH Zurich apply.

About ETH Zürich

ETH Zurich is one of the world’s leading universities specialising in science and technology. We are renowned for our excellent education, cutting-edge fundamental research and direct transfer of new knowledge into society. Over 30,000 people from more than 120 countries find our university to be a place that promotes independent thinking and an environment that inspires excellence. Located in the heart of Europe, yet forging connections all over the world, we work together to develop solutions for the global challenges of today and tomorrow.