FIROZ KHAN
Senior Lead Hardware Engineer
Bangalore
Summary
Senior Lead Hardware Engineer with 18+ years of proven end-to-end experience in the design, development, validation, and deployment of FPGA/SoC-based hardware systems, high-speed digital boards, and microcontroller-based solutions across Telecom, Consumer Electronics, Industrial Automation, and Defense domains. Specialized in Qualcomm Snapdragon reference designs, advanced memory interfaces (LPDDR5/4x/DDR4), PCIe Gen3, UFS, MIPI CSI/DSI, and multi-layer high-density PCB design. Expert in SI/PI modeling, PDN simulation, thermal analysis, design optimization, and full-cycle hardware product realization-from concept to production. Adept at collaborating with OEMs, driving cross-functional engineering decisions, and resolving complex system-level issues with strong analytical and debugging skills.
Overview
19
19
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Lead Hardware Engineer
Qualcomm Technologies India Pvt Ltd
03.2018 - Current
- Led the design and development of multiple Snapdragon reference design boards, enabling global OEMs in smartphones, industrial IoT, edge compute, and embedded applications.
- Key Responsibilities
- Designed high-speed Snapdragon reference boards: SoC integration, LPDDR, UFS, MIPI, PCIe.
- Authored functional hardware specifications, schematic architecture, layout rules & constraints.
- Conducted SI/PI analysis, PDN modeling, eye diagram evaluation, and timing correlation.
- Managed board bring-up, interface validation, and OEM debugging across global customer platforms.
- Delivered design reviews, chipset training material, layout guidelines, and architecture documentation.
Lead Hardware Engineer
Altran Technologies India Pvt Ltd
07.2013 - 02.2018
- Designed high-speed RAID and HBA boards for enterprise storage using Microsemi/PMC-Sierra controllers.
- Smart RAID 8e Board – PMC Sierra/Microsemi
- Interfaces: SAS 3.0, PCIe Gen3, DDR4, NAND
- Designed RAID controller board with 8-lane PCIe Gen3, SAS3.0 @ 12Gbps, 4GB DDR4 cache.
- Executed SI simulations for PCIe, SAS; validated jitter, attenuation, and margin analysis.
- Smart HBA Board – PMC Sierra/Microsemi
- Led schematic design, BOM optimization, SI constraints creation, layout & Gerber review.
Technical Lead – Hardware
iGATE Global Solutions Ltd
04.2012 - 07.2013
- Developed FPGA & microcontroller-based video and industrial control systems.
- Designed boards involving TI/Panasonic processors, DDR3, DDR2, USB, Ethernet, serial interfaces.
- Performed power analysis, SI modeling, layout review, temperature testing, DVT.
Senior System Engineer – Hardware
L&T Integrated Engineering Services
09.2010 - 03.2012
- Designed microcontroller/FPGA-based industrial control systems with RF, Flash, Ethernet, and memory interfaces.
- Delivered full schematic ownership, SI analysis, PCB guidelines, and verification testing.
Design Engineer
Mechatronics Test Equipment Pvt Ltd
09.2006 - 08.2010
- Designed defense-grade FPGA-based video processing systems using Xilinx Virtex-4/5, DDR2, DVI, SFP.
- Delivered system-level SI analysis, component selection, PCB routing rules, bring-up & DVT.
Education
Higher Secondary - undefined
M.Tech - VLSI Design
NIRMA University
Ahmedabad, India01.2006
B.E - Electronics & Communication
RGPV University
Bhopal, India01.2003
Skills
High-Speed Digital Board Design
Technical Skills
LPDDR5, LPDDR4x, LPDDR3, DDR3, DDR2, UFS, eMMC, NAND, NOR, SPI Flash, PCIe Gen3, SAS-3 @ 12Gbps, USB3.1/3.0/2.0, SFP, HDMI, DVI, CSI DPHY/CPHY, DSI DPHY/CPHY, GMII, MII, Ethernet 1Gbps, Concept HDL, DxDesigner-Expedition, Altium, Orcad, Allegro, PADS, PollEx PCB, HyperLynx, Cadence Sigrity (SI/PI), ADS, PowerSI, VHDL, Verilog, C, Oscilloscopes, Logic Analyzers, DMMs, Function Generators
Timeline
Senior Lead Hardware Engineer
Qualcomm Technologies India Pvt Ltd
03.2018 - Current
Lead Hardware Engineer
Altran Technologies India Pvt Ltd
07.2013 - 02.2018
Technical Lead – Hardware
iGATE Global Solutions Ltd
04.2012 - 07.2013
Senior System Engineer – Hardware
L&T Integrated Engineering Services
09.2010 - 03.2012
Design Engineer
Mechatronics Test Equipment Pvt Ltd
09.2006 - 08.2010
Higher Secondary - undefined
M.Tech - VLSI Design
NIRMA University
B.E - Electronics & Communication
RGPV University