Head of Microfabrication

Barrington James; München; Hybrid; EUR 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Barrington James is seeking a Head of Microfabrication to own the development and manufacturing of implantable microelectrodes for brain-computer interfaces. The role is based in the Munich area with hybrid work arrangements (3 days on-site, 2 from home) and involves building a team and driving scalable manufacturing for a next-generation medical device.

The successful candidate will lead the design and fabrication of multi-channel electrodes, oversee material choices for biocompatibility, and

Qualifications

• Leadership experience to build and guide a team.
• Hands-on microfabrication and cleanroom expertise.
• Knowledge of materials for implantable systems and biocompatibility.
• Entrepreneurial, end-to-end mindset with experience scaling prototypes.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead a high-performing microfabrication team.
• Design multi-channel electrode arrays and related fabrication processes.
• Select substrate and conductor materials for safe brain implantation.
• Characterise electrodes in lab and iterate designs based on results.
• Scale fabrication from prototypes to reproducible manufacturing.

Skills

Leadership

Microfabrication

End-to-end mindset

Biocompatible materials

Education

PhD in Neuroengineering

Tools

Photolithography

Sputtering

RIE

Wet-chemical processing

Job description

Head of Microfabrication - Brain-Computer Interfaces

Munich area (Gräfelfing), Germany | Hybrid (3 days on-site, 2 days from home) | Permanent

Our client is a well-funded new venture within an established, fast-growing healthcare group with

a strong track record of turning research into approved medical products. Their mission is to build the next generation of brain-computer interfaces, with the aim of restoring movement to people with paralysis, sight to the blind and a voice to those who can't speak.

They're now looking for a Head of Microfabrication to own the development and manufacturing of the implantable microelectrodes at the heart of their technology. You'll help shape the core product from an early stage and build the team around it.

What you'll be doing

• Building and leading a high-performing microfabrication team
• Designing the next generation of multi-channel electrode arrays, including layouts, geometries and fabrication processes (sputtering, photolithography, etching)
• Selecting substrate and conductor materials for safe, long-term implantation in the brain
• Characterising electrodes in the lab (impedance spectroscopy, long-term stability) and turning the results into design improvements
• Scaling fabrication from prototypes to reproducible, high-quality manufacturing

What you'll bring

• Leadership experience, and the confidence to build a team from the ground up
• Hands-on microfabrication and cleanroom experience, ideally in thin-film processing, photolithography, sputtering, RIE or wet-chemical methods
• Knowledge of materials for implantable systems, such as platinum, iridium oxide, PDMS, polyimide or Parylene C, and how they affect signal quality and biocompatibility
• An entrepreneurial, end-to-end mindset, with experience taking prototypes into scalable manufacturing
• A degree or PhD in Neuroengineering, Microsystems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Biomedical Engineering or a related field
• Fluent English (German is a bonus but not essential)
• Help build a technology that could genuinely change patients' lives
• Responsibility from day one, with short decision-making paths
• The backing of an established, well-resourced group
• Hybrid working from a site just outside Munich