MEMS Process Integration Scientist

HRL Laboratories, LLC; Malibu (CA); On-site; USD 140,700 - 175,950; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401K match

Flexible paid time off

Gym facilities

Comprehensive health benefits

Job summary

HRL Laboratories, LLC in Malibu, California is seeking a highly qualified individual to develop and advance MEMS-enabled sensors and actuators. The ideal candidate will lead efforts to integrate new manufacturing processes and oversee the design and testing of MEMS devices. With responsibilities that bridge research innovations and production, this role is essential for driving industry standards.

A Doctoral or Master’s degree with 5+ years of experience in fabrication processes is required. The position offers a competitive compensation package and supports a dynamic work environment fostering innovation.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of fabrication process experience in an R&D environment.
• Ability to thrive in a dynamic, multi-disciplinary team.
• Hands-on experience with advanced techniques.
• Expertise in precision metrology.
• Experience designing and characterizing process control monitors.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with a team to develop advanced MEMS-enabled sensors.
• Integrate new processes into scalable workflows.
• Lead the design, fabrication, and testing of MEMS devices.
• Design and execute experiments to validate MEMS technologies.
• Perform wafer inspections and metrology.

Skills

Process development

Optimization

Design of experiments (DOE)

Statistical data analysis

Innovative problem-solving

Education

Doctoral or Master’s Degree in a physical science or engineering field

Tools

Contact/stepper photolithography

Wet and plasma dry etching

High-aspect-ratio deep reactive ion etching (DRIE)

Chemical vapor deposition (CVD)

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM)

JMP

MATLAB

Python

COMSOL

SolidWorks

Job description

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with a team of scientists and engineers to develop advanced MEMS-enabled sensors and actuators for aerospace, automotive, and industrial applications, driving innovation to redefine industry standards.
• Integrate new processes into scalable workflows, ensuring seamless transitions from research to production while applying creativity and systems-level thinking.
• Lead the design, fabrication, and testing of MEMS devices and subsystems, ensuring they meet project requirements and are scalable for production.
• Design and execute experiments to validate innovative MEMS technologies, employing creative approaches to solve complex challenges and explore new possibilities.
• Perform wafer inspections and metrology to ensure quality and precision, driving iterative improvements for both research-specific and scalable processes.
• Manage critical project elements, including timelines, deliverables, and resources, ensuring successful execution and impactful outcomes that bridge research innovations with real-world applications.

Required Qualifications

• Doctoral or Master’s Degree in a physical science or engineering field with 5+ years of fabrication process experience in an R&D environment.
• Strong skills in process development, optimization, design of experiments (DOE), statistical data analysis, and innovative problem‑solving to drive cutting‑edge advancements.
• Ability to thrive in a dynamic, multi‑disciplinary team and enable effective cross‑laboratory collaboration.
• End‑to‑end fabrication mastery: integrate diverse process recipes into seamless fabrication workflows while addressing interdependencies to achieve high‑performance results.
• Hands‑on experience with advanced techniques:
  • Contact/stepper photolithography
  • Wet and plasma dry etching
  • High‑aspect‑ratio deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) for silicon, glass, and other MEMS materials
  • Chemical vapor deposition (CVD)
  • Dielectric and metal depositions
  • Wafer bonding and vacuum encapsulation of microscale structures
  • Sacrificial and structural layer creation and wet/dry release processes
• Expertise in precision metrology: using optical/infrared microscopy, interferometric measurements, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with elemental analysis to ensure quality and precision.
• Experience designing and characterizing process control monitors (PCM) for in‑process verification, and proficiency in creating and modifying mask layouts using industry‑standard CAD software such as L‑Edit or Cadence.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands‑on micro‑machining experience, both surface and bulk, is highly desired.
• Strong ability to document fabrication experiments accurately and thoroughly.
• Experience in back‑end wafer processing: wafer grinding, CMP, die singulation, and assembly processes into packages.
• Data analysis proficiency: familiarity with JMP, MATLAB, or Python is a significant advantage.
• Automation skills: experience in automating fabrication data collection and analysis.
• Device simulation expertise: knowledge of mechanical, thermal, or electrical finite element analysis (FEA) modeling using tools like COMSOL or SolidWorks.
• Inline process characterization: experience designing and conducting wafer or die‑level electrical or optical PCM testing.
• Experience writing technical proposals to present innovative research and development concepts.

Physical Requirements

Must be able to perform safely in a MEMS microfabrication cleanroom and follow standard operating practices.

Special Requirements

US Citizenship with the ability to obtain and maintain a US Government security clearance.

Compensation and Benefits

• Pay Range: $140,700 - $175,950
• Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location (California). The range displayed on each job posting reflects the target range for new hire salaries for the position. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job‑related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range during the hiring process.
• Benefits: HRL offers a generous and competitive total compensation and benefits package. Our Regular/Full Time benefits include medical, dental, vision, life insurance, 401K match, gym facilities, paid time off, sick time, upward mobility, and an exciting and challenging work environment.
• For more information about our company benefit offerings please visit https://www.hrl.com/careers/benefits

Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunities (U.S.)

We are proud to be an EEO/AA employer M/F/D/V. We maintain a drug‑free workplace and perform pre‑employment substance‑abuse testing.

At HRL, we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace. If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Equal Employment Opportunity Information

For information about Equal Employment Opportunity as an applicant under the law, please consult the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.