EO/IR and RF Scientist

Barone Consulting LLC; Bethesda (MD); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Barone Consulting LLC is seeking a SETA Support Specialist to assist government research programs, focusing on EO/IR and RF capabilities. You will support program managers in lifecycle activities, coordinate across government, academia, and industry, and ensure adherence to program management best practices.

The role emphasizes technical reviews, IV&V awareness, and transition support, with strong emphasis on cross‑functional collaboration and advanced sensing technologies.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in CS, applied physics, electrical or systems engineering or related field.
• 6+ years of experience in EO/IR and RF/microwave sensing domains.
• Experience developing, implementing, or analyzing signal processing or ML algorithms.
• Experience with test equipment and sensing hardware.
• Experience in leading multi-disciplinary R&D or T&E teams.
• Understanding of program planning, work breakdown structures, and milestones.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate across government, academic, and industry teams.
• Review technical deliverables, milestones, and results.
• Track risks, dependencies, and integration issues.
• Prepare reports and briefings for senior leadership.
• Serve as liaison between performers, T&E, and transition partners.
• Support requirements for systems integration, modeling, and data analytics.

Skills

EO/IR systems

RF/microwave

signal processing

LabVIEW

Python

MATLAB

C/C++

embedded systems

team leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related technical field

Master’s degree (can substitute 2 years experience)

PhD (preferred for seniority)

Tools

Spectrum analyzers

Oscilloscopes

RF test platforms

Job description

We are seeking a Scientific, Engineering, and Technical Assistance (SETA) Support Specialist to join our team in support of a government research organization dedicated to investing in high-risk, high-payoff research programs to tackle some of the most difficult challenges of national security.

The successful candidate will support the government program managers in the execution of the lifecycle of various research programs to include development of source selection materials, execution assistance, closeout, and transition. The SETA should be competent in Research and Development (R&D) programmatic reviews and procedures. The candidate will also be responsible for ensuring that project management best practices are followed by the individual programs to include performers, independent verification and validation (IV&V) entities, and within the government research organization itself.

The research programs you would support focus on developing advanced EO/IR and RF for Intelligence capabilities and methods.

The successful candidate will have subject matter expertise in EO/IR systems standards, procedures, and practices, and expertise with RF (VHF and UHF systems) and microwave.

Responsibilities:

Support the program managers in coordination, monitoring, communication, and integration of all technical aspects of the Program lifecycle that includes:

Coordinate across government, academic, and industry research teams.

Review and assess technical deliverables, milestones, and evaluation results.

Track risks, dependencies, and integration issues across performers.

Prepare reports, technical summaries, and briefings for senior leadership.

Serve as a liaison between performers, Test & Evaluation contributors, government and transition partners;

Provide support for program related requirements for systems integration, design, development, modeling and simulation, data analytics and architecture design;

Stay current on advances in technologies relevant to the research programs and perform technical studies as requested on topics of interest to the program managers.

Provide technical support and expertise on new concepts relevant to the program managers.

Support the evaluation of Seedling concepts

Qualifications

Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, applied physics, electrical engineering, systems engineering, or a related technical field. A master’s degree may be used in lieu of TWO (2) years of relevant work experience.
• SIX (6) or more years of working experience. Experiences should include, but not be limited to:
• Comprehensive understanding of EO/IR systems standards, procedures, and practices
• Expertise with microwave, VHF, UHF, or infrared wavelength systems
• Experience developing, implementing, testing, or analyzing signal processing, optimization, or machine learning algorithms
• Experience or equivalent education using test and measurement equipment relevant to advanced sensing technologies, such as spectrum analyzers, oscilloscopes, RF test platforms, wireless communications testbeds, biometric sensor test systems, or commercial off‑the‑shelf sensing devices
• Experience or equivalent education involving telecommunications systems, radio frequency (RF) sensing, signal processing, biometric sensing modalities, and/or advanced sensor system design and evaluation
• Experience managing a multi-disciplinary research and development (R&D) or Test and Evaluation (T&E) team
• Experience creating program plans, work breakdown structures, and milestone schedules
• Master’s degree or PhD in computer science, applied physics, electrical engineering, systems engineering, or related fields, with FOUR (4) or more years of work experience
• FOUR (4) years of experience with programming languages or tools commonly used in sensing, data analysis, or experimental automation, such as LabVIEW, Python, MATLAB, C/C++, or embedded systems software
• TWO (2) years of experience in the Intelligence Community (IC), including experience with requirements, CONOPS, and transition
• Awareness of supply chain, security, and integration considerations for commercial off‑the‑shelf sensing technologies, telecommunications hardware, and RF components

Why Join Us?

This role offers the opportunity to be part of mission-critical programs advancing collection technologies and national security. You will collaborate with leading universities, research labs, and industry partners on groundbreaking research and technologies.