A leading defence and advanced radar systems organisation in Abu Dhabi is seeking an experienced FPGA Firmware Engineer to develop and maintain FPGA firmware for advanced radar systems — with strong expertise in Digital Transceiver Modules (DTM) and embedded microcontroller integration. You will implement high-speed digital interfaces, radar signal chains, and real-time control logic for transceiver operation — applying VHDL, Verilog, and SystemVerilog on Xilinx or Intel/Altera FPGA platforms, with interfaces covering JESD204B/C, LVDS, SPI, UART, I2C, ADC/DAC, RF transceivers, and Ethernet in a demanding military and defence engineering environment.
About the Opportunity — FPGA Radar Firmware Engineer Abu Dhabi
Application Domain: Advanced radar systems — transmit/receive processing chains, Digital Transceiver Modules (DTM), TX/RX path control, digital up/down conversion, synchronisation, and high-speed data handling
FPGA Platforms: Xilinx or Intel/Altera FPGA — RTL development using VHDL, Verilog, and SystemVerilog for high-performance real-time radar applications
Interfaces: JESD204B/C, LVDS, SPI, UART, I2C, Ethernet, ADC/DAC, RF transceivers, mixers, and timing circuits
Radar-Specific Logic: Data framing and buffering, timing and trigger generation, PRI/PRF control, pulse shaping, and waveform sequencing
Microcontroller Integration: FPGA interfacing with embedded microcontrollers (STM32, ARM Cortex) for configuration, telemetry, calibration, and health monitoring
Abu Dhabi Defence & Radar Market — Strategic Opportunity
Strategic Context: Abu Dhabi is one of the GCC’s most active defence technology investment markets — with significant government-backed programmes in advanced radar, electronic warfare, and defence electronics creating sustained demand for highly specialised FPGA firmware engineers
Programme Prestige: FPGA radar firmware engineering for military and defence clients in Abu Dhabi builds internationally recognised credentials that are valued across defence OEMs, system integrators, and advanced electronics organisations globally
Rare Technical Profile: Engineers with solid radar digital architecture knowledge, DTM implementation expertise, and 5+ years of defence-sector FPGA firmware development are among the most sought-after and highest-compensated specialists in the global embedded engineering market
Career Growth: Clear progression from FPGA Firmware Engineer toward Senior Engineer, Lead Engineer, and Principal Radar Systems Engineering roles within Abu Dhabi’s expanding defence electronics sector
Position Overview
This FPGA Firmware Engineer role in Abu Dhabi covers the full scope of radar FPGA firmware development — from designing and implementing FPGA firmware for radar transmit/receive processing chains and developing RTL in VHDL/Verilog/SystemVerilog, through building and integrating Digital Transceiver Modules (DTM), interfacing with ADC/DAC, RF transceivers, mixers, and timing circuits, implementing data framing, PRI/PRF control, pulse shaping and waveform sequencing, integrating FPGA with embedded microcontrollers, implementing high-speed serial communication interfaces, supporting clocking architecture and deterministic latency, performing simulation, verification, timing closure, and hardware debugging, and collaborating with RF, DSP, and software teams for system-level integration.
Why This Role Matters: As FPGA Firmware Engineer on an advanced radar programme in Abu Dhabi, you are the digital hardware architect at the heart of a defence system where your RTL decisions — how the digital transceiver module processes TX/RX paths, how waveform sequencing and PRI/PRF control are implemented, how JESD204B data is captured and framed, how the FPGA hands off to the embedded microcontroller — directly determine whether the radar system meets its performance specifications under the demanding real-time conditions of military operation, apply 5+ years of defence and military FPGA firmware experience in a role where radar digital architecture knowledge is not a nice-to-have but a fundamental requirement — where you are expected to understand the signal chain from ADC/DAC through digital up/down conversion, clocking and synchronisation, to the real-time control logic that the system depends on, implement high-speed digital interfaces — JESD204B/C, LVDS, SPI, UART, I2C, Ethernet — with the timing closure discipline, clock domain crossing rigour, and deterministic latency awareness that defence-grade radar firmware demands, collaborate daily with RF, DSP, and software teams to integrate the FPGA firmware into a complete radar system — building the kind of cross-functional technical credibility that defines a truly senior defence firmware engineer, and build a defence FPGA firmware engineering career in Abu Dhabi’s growing radar and electronic warfare sector — where programme prestige, technical challenge, and compensation all reflect the genuine rarity of this specialist skill profile in the global engineering market.
Key Responsibilities
FPGA RTL Design — Radar Signal Chain & DTM
- Design and implement FPGA firmware for radar transmit/receive processing chains — covering the full digital signal path from ADC capture through processing to DAC output
- Develop RTL using VHDL, Verilog, and SystemVerilog for high-performance real-time radar applications on Xilinx or Intel/Altera FPGA platforms
- Build and integrate Digital Transceiver Modules (DTM) for TX/RX path control, digital up/down conversion, synchronisation, and high-speed data handling
- Interface with ADC/DAC, RF transceivers, mixers, and timing circuits — ensuring correct data capture, signal conditioning, and timing alignment throughout the radar chain
Radar Control Logic — Timing, PRI/PRF & Waveform
- Develop FPGA logic for data framing and buffering — implementing the data path structures required to handle high-speed radar data streams without loss or corruption
- Implement timing and trigger generation logic — ensuring precise, deterministic event synchronisation across the radar system’s transmit and receive cycles
- Develop PRI (Pulse Repetition Interval) and PRF (Pulse Repetition Frequency) control logic — implementing the scheduling and timing control that governs radar waveform cadence
- Implement pulse shaping and waveform sequencing logic — translating radar system waveform requirements into deterministic FPGA control sequences
Microcontroller Integration & High-Speed Interfaces
- Integrate FPGA with embedded microcontrollers (STM32, ARM Cortex) for configuration, telemetry, calibration, and health monitoring across the radar system
- Implement communication interfaces — SPI, UART, I2C, JESD204B/C, LVDS, and Ethernet — ensuring reliable, correctly timed data exchange between FPGA and external devices
- Support clocking architecture design, clock domain crossing (CDC) implementation, reset synchronisation, and deterministic latency management across the FPGA design
- Apply experience with high-speed serial interfaces and real-time streaming architectures to ensure the FPGA firmware meets the throughput and latency requirements of the radar system
Simulation, Verification, Debug & System Integration
- Perform simulation, functional verification, timing closure, and hardware debugging to validate FPGA firmware correctness before and after hardware integration
- Support timing analysis — identifying and resolving timing violations, CDC issues, and reset synchronisation problems across the FPGA design
- Collaborate with RF, DSP, and software teams for system-level integration — providing the cross-functional technical support needed to verify the complete radar system end-to-end
- Support hardware debugging on radar test platforms — diagnosing and resolving firmware, interface, and signal chain issues using lab instruments and FPGA debugging tools
Qualifications & Requirements
Experience Requirements
- Minimum 5 years of experience in firmware, embedded systems, or FPGA solution development for military or defence-related clients (REQUIRED)
- Solid knowledge of radar digital architecture and signal flow — understanding of the full radar signal chain from RF through ADC/DAC to digital processing (REQUIRED)
- Strong experience with Xilinx or Intel/Altera FPGA platforms in a production or programme engineering environment
- Strong understanding of Digital Transceiver Module (DTM) architecture and implementation for radar applications
Technical Skills
- Proficiency in VHDL, Verilog, and/or SystemVerilog for RTL development on high-performance real-time FPGA applications (REQUIRED)
- Experience with high-speed serial interfaces — JESD204B/C, LVDS — and real-time streaming architectures
- Experience interfacing FPGA with microcontrollers — STM32, ARM Cortex, or equivalent embedded processors
- Experience with clock domain crossing (CDC), reset synchronisation, and timing analysis in complex FPGA designs
- Familiarity with ADC/DAC data capture and RF control in a radar or electronic warfare system context
About This FPGA Radar Firmware Engineering Opportunity in Abu Dhabi
This FPGA Firmware Engineer role in Abu Dhabi sits within Abu Dhabi’s growing defence electronics and advanced radar systems sector — one of the most technically demanding and professionally rewarding engineering environments in the GCC. For an experienced FPGA firmware engineer with solid radar digital architecture knowledge, DTM implementation experience, and a genuine track record in military or defence firmware development, this role offers the combination of technical depth, programme prestige, and career advancement that distinguishes defence radar engineering from general embedded engineering work. Abu Dhabi’s defence technology investment trajectory ensures that experienced radar FPGA engineers are consistently valued, developed, and well compensated.
Career Excellence: Apply your FPGA radar firmware expertise in Abu Dhabi — where VHDL/Verilog RTL design, Digital Transceiver Module implementation, JESD204B high-speed interfaces, and real-time radar signal chain engineering combine in one of the GCC’s most technically demanding defence electronics engineering roles.
Who Should Apply?
- Defence FPGA Firmware Engineers: With 5+ years of military or defence-sector FPGA firmware development experience and solid radar digital architecture knowledge
- Radar Signal Chain Engineers: With DTM implementation, digital up/down conversion, ADC/DAC interfacing, and TX/RX path control experience on Xilinx or Intel/Altera FPGA platforms
- VHDL / Verilog / SystemVerilog RTL Engineers: With real-time FPGA design experience covering timing closure, clock domain crossing, and high-speed serial interface implementation
- JESD204B / LVDS Interface Engineers: With high-speed serial data interface implementation and real-time streaming architecture experience for radar or electronic warfare applications
- Embedded Microcontroller + FPGA Integration Engineers: With STM32, ARM Cortex, or equivalent microcontroller integration experience for FPGA-based radar configuration, telemetry, and health monitoring
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