Test Engineer

Responsibilities

• Design and build test fixtures, instrumentation setups, and data acquisition systems that capture high-quality, repeatable data — from lab-scale cells to large-area modules.
• Plan and execute test and characterization campaigns across solar cells and large-area products, including instrumentation selection and acceptance criteria.
• Characterize devices using JV/I-V, EQE/IPCE, electroluminescence (EL) imaging, and flash/LIV testing; correlate lab-scale results with large-area product performance.
• Own reliability and qualification testing — accelerated lifetime, damp heat, thermal cycling, UV and light-soak exposure — driving toward relevant PV module standards (e.g., IEC 61215 / 61730).
• Develop and maintain test protocols, procedures, and reports; keep rigorous records of configurations, calibrations, and results.
• Automate data acquisition and repetitive test sequences (LabVIEW, Python, or similar) to scale throughput and consistency.
• Perform failure analysis and root-cause investigations; feed findings back to the engineering and manufacturing teams.
• Analyze and interpret data to guide decision-making across product and engineering.
• Influence hardware design for testability — flag instrumentation access and design choices that make products easier to qualify, and push back on unnecessary complexity in test setups.
• Enforce and continuously improve lab safety practices for electrical, high-voltage, and environmental-chamber work.
• Be data-driven and experimentally rigorous — rely on evidence, not speculation — and hold peers to the same.

Requirements

• One of: a B.S. with 2+ years of hands-on test engineering experience (internships and academic research count toward this), or an M.S./Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, Chemistry, or a related field.
• Hands-on experience designing and executing test plans, including instrumentation selection and test fixture design.
• Experience testing and characterizing solar cells, semiconductor devices, or similar single-heterojunction devices (e.g., OPVs, OLEDs, TFTs, thin-film sensors) — or a strong desire to learn.
• Familiarity with reliability, environmental, and qualification test methods, and an interest in PV module standards.
• Proficiency with data acquisition and analysis tools (Python, MATLAB, LabVIEW, or similar).
• Comfort working with high-voltage, high-temperature, or otherwise hazardous equipment, with a demonstrated safety-first mindset.
• Clear technical writing and the ability to communicate findings to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Extensive laboratory experience — planning and conducting experiments following proper protocols, analyzing data, and self-driving optimization.
• Demonstrated ability to work with multiple materials and openness to exploring new material systems and methods.
• Eager to contribute and learn in a collaborative, dynamic, and fast-paced start-up environment.
• A strong, almost perfectionist attitude toward maintaining controls and reducing process variation (Six Sigma certification a plus).

Bonus Points

• Expertise in perovskite solar cells and/or organic photovoltaics (OPVs).
• Experience with PV module reliability and qualification standards (IEC 61215, 61730) and accelerated aging.
• Experience building automated test systems and instrument control (e.g., Keithley 2400/2600 GPIB (IEEE-488), Ethernet or USB control).
• Experience using laser spectroscopy or building spectroscopic systems for studying optoelectronic materials.
• Experience with cleanrooms, gloveboxes, and vacuum equipment.
• Experience setting up electrical breadboard test systems.
• Experience with statistical process control, DOE, or Six Sigma methods.
• Experience with prototyping hardware (Arduino, Raspberry Pi, ESP32) or PLCs using IEC 61131-3 standard languages.
• Experience with mechanical design (SolidWorks, Autodesk, Onshape) and prototyping (3D printing, basic machining, or CAM) for test fixtures.
• Experience with electrical layout (Altium, KiCad).
• A willingness to 'tinker', or experiment to drive value and generate new ideas.