Electrical System Engineer

Planet Pharma; Menlo Park (CA); On-site; USD 96,000 - 165,000; Full time

Job summary

Planet Pharma in Menlo Park, CA is seeking a Contractor - Staff Electrical Systems Engineer for a 6-month contract with potential extension or conversion. You will build, bring up, and troubleshoot the electrical system architecture of complex DNA sequencing instruments, spanning system architecture, PCB design, power and signal distribution, cabling, and harnessing.

Collaborating with firmware, software, manufacturing, and quality teams, you will drive interfaces, lead root-cause

Qualifications

• Minimum 7–10 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 5–8 years with a Master’s; or 3–7 years with a PhD.
• Hands-on schematic capture and PCB design using Altium/Cadence.
• Experience with USB, CAN, or EtherCAT in electronic architectures.
• Experience with PCB layout, component selection, fabrication, and production release.
• Cable and harness architecture, documentation, prototyping, and sourcing.
• Strong lab and troubleshooting skills with oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, DMMs, and power supplies.
• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Define, document, prototype and validate cables and wire harnesses, including connectors, pinouts, grounding, shielding and test requirements.
• Read and understand mixed-signal boards with embedded processors, high-speed interfaces, FPGAs, and power electronics.
• Collaborate with firmware, software, sequencing integration, consumables, mechanical, optical, fluidics, thermal, manufacturing, quality, service to define interfaces and deliver integrated instrument designs.
• Lead system-level troubleshooting and root-cause investigations across electrical hardware, firmware, software, mechanical and optical systems.
• Own and analyze electrical system performance margins including power integrity, grounding, shielding, noise, ESD, EMI/EMC, timing, and thermal loading.
• Partner with NPI, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and suppliers to document PCBA and cable designs for production, including component selection and DFx considerations.
• Ensure electrical designs comply with regulatory, safety, EMC, and environmental requirements (UL, CE, FCC/EMC, IEC, FDA, ISO).

Skills

Schematic capture

PCB design/layout

Altium

Cadence

Power electronics

Signal integrity

Lab troubleshooting

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Master’s degree (preferred)

PhD (optional)

Tools

Altium

Cadence

PCB design software

Job description

Estimated Duration: 6-month contract, potential for extension/conversion

Position Summary

As Contractor - Staff Electrical Systems Engineer, you will build, bring up, and troubleshoot the electrical system architecture of complex DNA sequencing instruments. This highly technical, hands‑on role spans system architecture, board-level electronics, power and signal distribution, cabling and harnessing, while collaborating with firmware, software, manufacturing, new product introduction, quality, and service to deliver robust, reliable, scalable, and production‑ready instrument designs.

Responsibilities

• Define, design, document, prototype, and validate cables and wire harnesses, including connector selection, pinouts, wire and shielding requirements, grounding, signal integrity, mechanical routing constraints, and test requirements. Work with internal technicians and external suppliers to transition cable designs into production.
• Read and understand mixed-signal circuit boards incorporating embedded processors and microcontrollers, high-speed digital interfaces, programmable logic (FPGAs), power electronics, motor and actuator drivers, and sensor interfaces.
• Collaborate closely with other teams including firmware, software, sequencing integration, consumables, mechanical, optical, fluidics, thermal, manufacturing, quality, service, and others to define interfaces and deliver fully integrated instrument designs.
• Lead system-level troubleshooting and root-cause investigations involving interactions of electrical hardware, firmware, software, mechanical and optical systems, etc. Implement design and process improvements that increase instrument reliability and manufacturability.
• Own and analyze electrical system performance margins, including power integrity, grounding, shielding, noise, ESD, EMI/EMC, high-speed signal integrity, timing, thermal loading, motor and actuator control, and sensor signal quality across operating conditions and production variation.
• Partner with NPI, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and suppliers to document PCBA and cable designs for production, including component selection and lifecycle management, DFx considerations, manufacturing test strategy, prototype and production builds, and post-launch issue resolution.
• Ensure electrical designs comply with applicable regulatory, safety, EMC, and environmental requirements, including UL, CE, FCC/EMC, IEC, FDA, and ISO requirements as applicable to laboratory and clinical instrumentation.

Required Qualifications

• Typically requires a minimum of 7-10 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or a minimum of 5-8 years of related experience with a Master’s degree; or a minimum of 3-7 years of related experience with a PhD. ?
• Strong hands‑on experience with schematic capture and PCB design/layout using Altium, Cadence, or similar professional EDA tools, including review of multilayer and mixed-signal PCB designs.
• Past experience incorporating communication protocols and interfaces such as USB, CAN, or EtherCAT in electronic architectures.
• Experience working with suppliers and manufacturing partners on PCB layout, component selection and availability, fabrication, assembly, prototype builds, and production release.
• Demonstrated strength in cable and harness architecture, design, documentation, prototyping, and sourcing.
• Strong laboratory and troubleshooting skills, including experience with oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, DMMs, power supplies, or similar electrical test equipment.
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills, with the ability to lead technical discussions and work effectively across engineering and operational organizations.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience developing life science, medical, diagnostic, semiconductor, robotics, or other complex scientific instruments combining electronics, firmware, software, optics, motion control, fluidics, thermal control, high-speed electronics, and high-speed data transmission.
• Experience with high-speed digital interfaces such as Ethernet, PCIe, USB, DDR, or other multi-gigabit serial interfaces, including signal-integrity considerations.
• Experience with precision motion control, motors, encoders, sensors, and electromechanical control systems.
• Experience with EMC/EMI design and troubleshooting, safety certification, and regulatory requirements for laboratory or clinical instrumentation.
• Experience with product lifecycle management (PLM), configuration control, engineering change orders, and formal design documentation in a regulated or quality-controlled product-development environment.
• Experience supporting NPI, manufacturing scale-up, reliability improvement, serviceability, and sustaining engineering for complex products.

Candidates must have current authorization to work in the United States without the need for present or future sponsorship.

This role is required to be 100% onsite.

You may be required from time to time to visit and work at other company locations and for such times as the Company considers necessary for the proper performance of your duties.

All listed tasks and responsibilities are deemed essential functions of this position; however, business conditions may require reasonable accommodations for additional tasks and responsibilities.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation.