Chief Engineer- Space Payloads

About the role

The Emerging Space Systems Division at Leidos currently has an opening for a Chief Engineer to work in our San Diego, CA office. This is an exciting opportunity to use your experience to develop novel EO/IR sensors for Space-based missions, including Missile Warning/Tracking, Missile Defense, Space Domain Awareness, and others.

Primary Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary technical authority for the design, integration, and testing of space-qualified optical sensor systems.
• Lead multi-disciplinary engineering teams, providing technical direction across mechanical, electrical, thermal, algorithm development, and software engineering workflows.
• Lead hardware maturation efforts to transition technologies from breadboard validation (TRL 4) through space-qualified prototyping and demonstration (TRL 7).
• Direct the integration of complex sensor processing algorithms into flight software architectures, ensuring real-time performance and data integrity.
• Conduct rigorous trade studies and design reviews (PDR, CDR) to ensure sensor performance meets stringent mission requirements for sensitivity, resolution, and SWaP-C.
• Oversee environmental testing protocols, including thermal vacuum (TVAC), vibration, and radiation hardening, to validate flight readiness.

Basic Qualifications

• Education & Experience: Bachelor’s degree with 12+ years of applicable experience, or a Master’s degree with 10+ years of experience. Additional years of relevant experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• Security Clearance: Must have a Secret security clearance to be considered for the position.
• Subject Matter Expertise: Must be a Subject Matter Expert (SME) within IR optical or opto-mechanical engineering (e.g., precision mechanisms, optical housing design, or opto-thermal stability).
• Technical Breadth: Demonstrated working knowledge of associated engineering disciplines, including software development, algorithm maturation, and electrical systems.
• Space Flight Heritage: Proven track record of leading space-based payload development programs through the full flight qualification lifecycle.

Preferred Qualifications

• Space-Based IR Analytical Expertise: Experience leading Radiometric Performance Modeling (e.g., signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) analysis, Noise Equivalent Differential Temperature (NEDT), and stray light suppression studies).
• Proficiency in Thermal-Optical-Mechanical (STOP) Analysis to predict sensor performance under extreme orbital thermal gradients.
• Familiarity with Non-Uniformity Correction (NUC) and Bad Pixel Replacement (BPR) algorithm development for focal plane arrays (FPAs).
• Experience conducting Stray Light and Ghosting Studies using tools like FRED or ASAP to ensure high-fidelity IR sensing against bright backgrounds.
• Mission-Specific Studies: Leading Jitter and Line-of-Sight (LOS) Stability analyses to ensure sub-microradian pointing accuracy during dynamic maneuvers.
• Conducting Radiation Effects Analysis (TID, SEE) for cryogenically cooled IR detectors and associated readout integrated circuits (ROICs).

Standards & Interfaces

• Deep familiarity with SDA (Space Development Agency) standards and optical communication terminal (OCT) specifications.
• Experience managing Cryocooler Integration and vibration isolation studies for long-wave infrared (LWIR) or mid-wave infrared (MWIR) missions.

Tools

• Expertise in specialized design software such as Zemax, Code V, or MATLAB/Simulink for system-level performance simulation.
• Proficiency in digital signal processing (DSP) or computer vision algorithms related to optical sensing.
• Expertise in the procurement and management of high-reliability (Hi-Rel) space components and sub-tier supplier technical oversight.
• Expertise in hyperspectral imaging, seekers, laser communications, or other sensing modalities or missions.

Pay Range

$131,300.00 - $237,350.00