Laser Communications Optical Engineer — Satellites

United States Digital Space LLC

Redmond (WA)

On-site

USD 105,000 - 175,000

Full time

14 days+

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Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Vision insurance

Dental insurance

401(k) plan

Disability insurance

Life insurance

Parental leave

Stock purchase plan

Bonuses

Paid vacation

Public holidays

Shuttle service

Job summary

United States Digital Space LLC in Redmond, WA, is seeking an Optical Engineer for Starlink satellite laser communications. You will design, validate, and operate free-space optical systems, helping to advance a cutting-edge constellation and mission-critical tracking capabilities.

You will collaborate with cross-functional teams, lead verification and field testing, and ensure designs meet environmental, reliability, and manufacturability requirements while supporting a fast-paced, high-impact

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in physics, electrical engineering, or related STEM field.
2+ years hands-on lab or work experience in optics, photonics, laser tech, or precision mechanical design/testing.
1+ years of programming experience (C++, MATLAB, or Python).

Responsibilities

Apply optics and photonics knowledge to design, analyze, validate optical systems.
Define requirements for high-performance optical systems in challenging environments.
Lead optical architecture definition through internal trade studies and risk testing.
Participate in verification testing: environmental qualification, performance, reliability, and fault injection.
Maintain link budgets, specs, and system capabilities data.
Interface with manufacturing and supply chain to ensure producible designs.
Collaborate with software/automation teams for automated optical testing.
Represent laser communications systems in reliability discussions with teams and vendors.