Communications Systems Engineer (Optical/Quantum)

Saic; Chantilly (VA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

SAIC is seeking a Communications Systems Engineer with strong optical and quantum communications experience to support IC and DoW customers. You will provide SETA support for advanced hardware, software, and architectures across land, sea, air, and space domains.

The role involves technical reviews, system engineering, and collaboration with multidisciplinary teams to shape future national security systems.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, physics, or related discipline with 9+ years of experience; Master’s with 7+ years; PhD/JD with 4+ years.
• Experience with USG program management and acquisition lifecycle processes and documentation.
• Strong interpersonal, verbal, and technical writing skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams.

Responsibilities

• Perform reviews, assessments, and risk evaluations of optical and quantum comms at component to system level.
• Evaluate designs including optical terminals, free-space links, photonic components, and entanglement-based architectures.
• Assess technologies for space links, modulation, pointing/tracking, link budgets, networking, and secure quantum transport.
• Support roadmaps, requirements, specs, verification approaches, and transition strategies for modernization.
• Conduct outreach with mission users to capture needs and assess applicability of capabilities.
• Prepare system engineering docs, analyses, and program-level briefings.
• Support programmatic activities including source selections, lifecycle docs, and system integration planning.

Skills

Optical communications

Quantum communications

Systems engineering

Technical writing

Program management

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering/physics

Master's degree (preferred)

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Description

SAIC is seeking a Communications Systems Engineer with strong optical and quantum communications engineering experience to support specialized analysis, engineering, design, and operations for Intelligence Community (IC) and Department of War (DoW) customers. We support development of next‑generation and far‑future national security systems across land, sea, air, and space domains.

We are hiring a Communications Systems Engineer to provide systems engineering and technical advisory (SETA) support to an IC Research & Development (R&D) customer developing advanced hardware, software, and architectural solutions for mission‑critical optical and quantum communication systems.

Responsibilities

• Perform technical reviews, assessments, and risk evaluations of optical and quantum communication system development efforts at the component, subsystem, system, and architecture levels.
• Evaluate designs and technologies including optical terminals, free‑space optical links, photonic components, entanglement‑based communication architectures, and quantum‑enhanced optical subsystems.
• Assess emerging technologies and identify gaps related to high‑bandwidth space links, advanced modulation formats, pointing/tracking systems, link budgets, networking performance, and secure quantum‑enabled transport architectures.
• Support development of technology roadmaps, requirements, specifications, verification approaches, and transition strategies for optical and quantum system modernization.
• Conduct technical outreach with mission users to capture needs and evaluate applicability of emerging optical and quantum capabilities.
• Prepare system engineering documentation, technical analyses, and program‑level briefings to communicate findings and strategic recommendations.
• Provide support to programmatic and acquisition activities, including source selections, lifecycle documentation, and system integration planning.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, physics, or related discipline and nine (9) years or more experience; Masters and seven (7) years or more experience ; PhD or JD and four (4) years or more experience
• Experience with USG program management and acquisition lifecycle processes and documentation.
• Strong interpersonal, verbal, and technical writing communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office tools.

Desired Qualifications

• Master’s degree in engineering, physics, or related discipline.
• 12+ years of relevant experience, including at least 4 years in optical or quantum communication systems.
• 1+ year of experience supporting USG R&D acquisition processes and documentation.
• Experience with space‑based optical terminals, quantum optical payloads, photonic systems, or advanced quantum‑enhanced communication architectures

Target salary range: $160,001 - $200,000. The estimate displayed represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors.