Analog and mixed-signal circuits, such as data converters, PLLs, regulators, SerDes and RF blocks, are laid out by hand. The analog layout engineer turns a circuit designer's schematic into a physical layout whose performance depends on careful placement, matching and routing.
The work covers device placement for matching and symmetry, guard rings and isolation, parasitic-aware routing, and running and fixing DRC, LVS and parasitic extraction. Analog layout engineers work closely with circuit designers, iterating until the extracted layout meets performance targets.
Because small layout choices can change circuit behaviour, experienced analog layout engineers at the right node are among the hardest design roles to hire.