Senior Microscope Engineer

Responsibilities

• Design and build custom, cost-effective, high-throughput optical microscopes (e.g., spinning-disk confocal) optimized for expanded tissue.
• Take a working prototype to a production-ready instrument: motorized staging, optimized acquisition, and validated performance.
• Operate microscopes to acquire high-resolution 3D image volumes of expanded neural tissue, sustaining high throughput and high instrument uptime.
• Produce complete build documentation — bills of materials, budgets, timelines, and assembly SOPs a technician can follow — and lead replication toward a small fleet.
• Troubleshoot imaging issues and perform routine maintenance on microscopy equipment.

Qualifications

• 5+ years designing and building optical microscopy instruments such as spinning-disk confocal or lightsheet systems, with at least one high-throughput microscope built end to end.
• Strong optical design and alignment skills, and hands-on optomechanical build experience (CAD and rapid prototyping a plus).
• Practical command of illumination sources, objective/optics selection, and cameras/detectors.
• Ability to code for instrument control, automation, and image processing and analysis.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a dynamic, fast-paced research environment.

Skills

• High-speed image-sensor integration, FPGA or custom data-acquisition electronics (nice to have).
• Experience with the storage and data pipelines required for large-scale imaging (nice to have).

Benefits

Opportunity to work in a cutting-edge field that impacts neuroscience and AI safety.

Pay

$140,000–$200,000 base salary depending on experience, plus equity and benefits.