Electronics Engineer

DropLab Inc.; Toronto; On-site; CAD 85,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

DropLab Inc. designs microfluidic cartridges and point-of-care diagnostic instruments. You will sit next to firmware, mechanics, and assay — collaborating closely at the bench on real hardware.

As part of the hardware team in Toronto, you will own instrument and test-jig electronics from schematic through bring-up, ensuring robust design from concept to build. You will work hands-on, co-developing with firmware and encouraging rapid iteration on PCBs.

Qualifications

• Degree in electrical / electronics engineering, or equivalent bench experience.
• Several years designing and bringing up your own PCBs—not just reviewing vendor layouts.
• Mixed-signal analog: amplifiers, low-noise supplies, ADCs, grounding and shielding.
• Comfortable with high-voltage or high-power electronics coexisting with sensitive analog.
• Hands-on: soldering (including fine-pitch / rework), scope, logic analyzer, reflow.
• Fusion 360 for schematic/PCB layout preferred; KiCad/Altium useful; willingness to use Fusion 360.

Responsibilities

• Design, layout, and spin mixed-signal PCBs: schematic, stackup, BOM, fab, assembly/rework, and bring-up.
• Isolate high-voltage fluidic drive from sensitive analog detection paths. EMI, grounding, shielding, and analog power domains are part of the job.
• Debug noise, coupling, power integrity, and connector/interface issues on a real instrument.
• Design and integrate boards for compute, HMI, sensing, actuation, power, and test jigs.
• Work daily with firmware on bring-up, test harnesses, and I2C/SPI/UART at the bench.
• Keep schematics, BOMs, and revision notes in a state a contract manufacturer could build from.

Skills

Soldering

Bench testing

Debugging

Hands-on electronics

Education

Electrical/Electronics engineering degree

Tools

Fusion 360

KiCad

Altium

Job description

DropLab designs microfluidic cartridges and point-of-care diagnostic instruments. We build the full stack in-house: cartridges, pneumatics, optics, analog detection, embedded firmware, and the electronics that tie it together. The team is small. You will sit next to firmware, mechanics, and assay — not throw gerbers over a wall.

The role

About DropLab

DropLab designs microfluidic cartridges and point-of-care diagnostic instruments. We build the full stack in-house: cartridges, pneumatics, optics, analog detection, embedded firmware, and the electronics that tie it together. The team is small. You will sit next to firmware, mechanics, and assay — not throw gerbers over a wall.

Own instrument and test-jig electronics from schematic through bring-up.

Design mixed-signal boards, get them fabricated, assemble or rework them, and prove they work in the system so firmware and the rest of hardware can move.

What you'll do

• Design, layout, and spin mixed-signal PCBs: schematic, stackup, BOM, fab, assembly/rework, and bring-up.
• Isolate high-voltage fluidic drive from sensitive analog detection paths. EMI, grounding, shielding, and analog power domains are part of the job.
• Debug noise, coupling, power integrity, and connector/interface issues on a real instrument — not only on the bench.
• Design and integrate boards for compute, HMI, sensing, actuation, power, and test jigs.
• Work daily with firmware (STM32 / RTOS) on bring-up, test harnesses, and I2C/SPI/UART. You do not need to be a firmware engineer; you do need to sit at the bench with one.
• Keep schematics, BOMs, and revision notes in a state a contract manufacturer could build from.

What we're looking for

• Degree in electrical / electronics engineering, or equivalent bench experience.
• Several years designing and bringing up your own PCBs — not only reviewing vendor layouts.
• Mixed-signal analog: amplifiers, low-noise supplies, ADCs, grounding, shielding, and measuring noise floors.
• Comfortable with high-voltage or high-power electronics coexisting with sensitive analog on the same instrument.
• Hands-on: soldering (including fine-pitch / rework), scope, logic analyzer, reflow.
• Schematic and PCB layout in Fusion 360 (strongly preferred). Experience with KiCad or Altium is useful; willingness to work in Fusion 360 is required.
• SPICE is a plus.
• Willing to own a board until it works in the instrument, not until it leaves the fab.

Nice to have

• Photodiode / APD / lock-in or fluorescence detection electronics.
• Electrochemistry / EIS / potentiostat hardware.
• Motor drivers, piezo drive, or pneumatic/valve electronics.
• Mechanical design in Fusion 360 (enclosures, board outlines, connector keepouts) alongside electronics.
• STM32, compute modules, or Python bench scripts.
• Small-batch production: panelization, test jigs, CM packages.
• Diagnostics, life-science instruments, or other regulated hardware.

What this is not

Not a pure firmware role. Not a paper-architecture role. Not remote-first. You will be in the Toronto lab, spinning boards on a short cycle and debugging them on a real instrument next to fluidics and optics.