Principal RF/Electrical Engineer

Core Responsibilities

• Support design of satellite communications systems hardware (RF-Front-End, LNA, SSPA, PLLs, Filters, etc.) and software design and development
• Support selection and design of small satellite antenna technologies
• Develop link budget analyses, simulations, traffic/capacity analysis, RF system design and dimensioning, coverage and frequency planning, etc.
• Support satellite communications systems integration, testing, delivery to launch and satellite bus partners/vendors
• Design and plan satellite communications systems testing configurations on the ground when testing satellite communications systems performance both in-lab and in-orbit
• Interface with Systems Engineering team to inform constellation/network architecture and design based on RF communications systems performance
• Bench level mechatronics work including testing, integration, assembly, programming and prototyping of electronics hardware and software
• Some software-based Systems Engineering analysis
• Support developing and maintaining technical documentation for hardware/software design and development

Qualifications

• A Bachelor’s degree (or better) in RF or Electrical Engineering
• 15+ years of experience working on projects developing space payload hardware and software (preferably communications systems)
• Thorough understanding of RF link budget, RF active and passive components
• Experience in designing wireless communication systems
• Experience in basic principles of antenna theory
• Hands-on experience from concept to production with RF Front End design, SDRs, antennas, LNA, SSPA, filters, couplers, RF switches, PLLs, antennas, DC-DC converters, microcontroller, FPGA is highly desired
• Hands-on experience with testing, troubleshooting, and debugging RF systems
• Programming Proficiency in one or more programming languages is highly desired (e.g., C++, C, Python, MATLAB, etc.)
• Experience working with Linux based systems
• Proficiency with electrical design software, such as Altium Designer, ADS, and SolidWorks are highly desired
• Proficiency with test equipment including VNAs, protocol signal generators, and spectrum analyzers
• Proficiency with schematic capture and PCB layout using Altium
• Strong knowledge and understanding of RF air interfaces and their use of multiple access schemes such as TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, CDMA, etc. is highly desired
• Hands-on experience with integrating hardware and software systems is desired
• Must be good with computers. Fluent in Linux, Windows, and Mac OSX; Very capable with Microsoft Office (Excel, Project, PowerPoint, Word)
• Knowledge of some communications/networking protocols (for instance: IP, TCP/IP, DVB-S/S2/S2X, CCSDS, LoRA, TDMA, CDMA, FDMA, GSE Encapsulation, ZeroMQ, VXLAN tunneling, DHCP, Tailscale, Ethernet, etc.)