Photonics Experimental & Fabrication Engineer

Zero Point Motion; Bristol; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

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Pension

Private medical insurance

Job summary

A leading photonics technology firm in Bristol is seeking an experimentalist with strong hands-on experience and expertise in photonic systems. The ideal candidate will design and analyze complex experiments with lasers and photodetectors, handle large datasets, and collaborate with engineering teams to optimize designs. Candidates should be proficient in Python and willing to push the boundaries of photonics towards production. This role offers competitive compensation and a dynamic working environment.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience with lasers and photodetectors.
• Experience with nonlinear optics is a plus.
• Willingness to rapidly upskill in design–experiment correlation.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and improve photonic experiments.
• Analyze experimental datasets with statistical discipline.
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional engineering teams.

Skills

Strong hands-on experimental experience with photonic systems

Comfort with electronics and lab instrumentation

Demonstrated Python coding ability

Comfort handling large datasets and statistics

Education

Relevant engineering or physics degree

Tools

Python

Laser systems

Photodetectors

Job description

The Role

You will be deeply hands‑on with active photonic test setups, automated measurement, data analysis, and debugging complex experimental behaviour involving:

• optical power, phase, and frequency
• detector noise and bandwidth
• laser dynamics, stability, and drift
• nonlinear or bias‑dependent effects

Cleanroom experience is valuable - but your impact here comes from how you design experiments, interrogate data, and extract physical insight, not from running processes.

What You’ll Do

Experimental ownership (active & nonlinear systems)

• Design, build, and improve experiments involving:
  • lasers and optical sources
  • photodetectors and readout chains
  • active PIC components and biasing
  • nonlinear or power‑dependent effects
• Run automated wafer‑scale and lot‑scale measurements
• Characterise behaviour across:
  • bias points
  • optical power
  • temperature
  • time (drift, ageing, stability).
• Work late when experiments demand it - then automate so you don’t repeat heroics
• Invent new experimental or analysis approaches when behaviour is messy or non‑ideal

Data & analysis (non‑negotiable)

• Analyse large experimental datasets with strong statistical discipline
• Quantify and separate:
  • noise sources
  • drift mechanisms
  • nonlinearities
  • cross‑coupling effects.
• Correlate results to:
  • design intent
  • simulation assumptions
  • fabrication and process variation
  • metrology and electrical readout.
• Write substantial Python for:
  • data processing
  • automation
  • experiment control
  • model validation

Fabrication‑aware insight

• Use fabrication knowledge to:
  • interpret variation intelligently
  • identify real yield and performance limiters
  • distinguish process effects from physics
• Avoid the trap of blaming fabrication for lack of understanding
• Feed insight back into design, simulation, and architecture decisions

Cross‑domain collaboration

• Work closely with photonics design, process, electronics, FPGA, and systems engineers
• Ensure experimental results directly inform:
  • design updates
  • simulation models
  • biasing strategies
  • future system architectures

Required Background

You must have:

• Strong hands‑on experimental experience with photonic systems, including:
  • lasers
  • photodetectors
  • PICs or fibre‑based waveguides
• Comfort working with active and bias‑dependent behaviour, not just passive components
• Fabrication or process‑development experience used analytically
• Demonstrated Python coding ability beyond trivial scripts
• Comfort handling large datasets and statistics
• Comfort with electronics and lab instrumentation
• Willingness to rapidly upskill in design–experiment–system correlation

Experience with nonlinear optics, laser locking, noise characterisation, or optoelectronic readout is a strong plus.

Who This Role Is For

This role is for:

• Experimentalists who care about how photonic systems actually behave in operation
• Engineers who enjoy debugging noise, drift, instability, and nonlinear effects
• People who automate instead of repeating manual work
• Builders who want to push photonics toward production reality
• Engineers with high integrity and strong internal standards

What This Role Is Not

This is not:

• a cleanroom operator role
• a passive‑component‑only measurement job
• a simulation‑first, experiment‑second position
• a role for manual, spreadsheet‑driven analysis

What Success Looks Like

After 6–12 months:

• Lasers, detectors, and active PICs are characterised across wafers and lots
• Nonlinearities, noise sources, and drift mechanisms are understood and quantified
• Experimental results directly drive design, simulation, and biasing updates
• Measurement, metrology, and electrical data are linked coherently
• Test infrastructure becomes a competitive advantage
• Learning cycles around active photonic behaviour are dramatically shorter

Working with us

• Compensation: Our framework is built on fairness and transparency, with regular reviews to reflect growth and performance.
• Benefits: Share options, pension, and private medical insurance.
• Culture: A deep‑tech rocketship backed by leading investors. We’re building breakthrough technology with real commercial impact. Pace is high. Standards are higher.

Zero Point Motion is determined to foster belonging and empowerment at work. We are committed to providing a work environment where there’s a zero‑tolerance approach to discrimination, and everyone is treated with respect. Equity, diversity and inclusion are central to our mission,and we strongly encourage candidates of all different backgrounds and identities to apply. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please contact us.