Microfabrication Scientist I/II

Lila Sciences; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 108,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Comprehensive benefits

Job summary

Lila Sciences is seeking a Microfabrication Scientist on the Vacuum Synthesis team to lead the fabrication of prototype devices used to probe and characterize novel materials. You will design and build test structures, develop process flows for thin-film deposition, lithography, and etching, and work with cross‑functional teams to accelerate discovery.

This hands-on role requires deep cleanroom experience, a track record of translating experimental goals into manufacturable steps, and a

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Materials Science, Electrical/ Chemical Engineering, Physics, or related field; MS/PhD preferred.
• 5+ years of hands-on cleanroom experience.
• Deep expertise in thin-film deposition and recipe troubleshooting.
• Proficiency in photolithography, etching, and deposition.
• Experience with metrology/characterization tools as part of process development.
• Track record implementing novel fabrication process flows.

Responsibilities

• Design and fabricate prototype devices and test structures used to evaluate novel materials.
• Develop, optimize, and troubleshoot thin-film deposition recipes across diverse material systems.
• Execute cleanroom processes, including lithography, wet/dry etching, and thin-film deposition.
• Characterize films and devices using profilometry, ellipsometry, SEM, and electrical probing.
• Integrate fabrication processes into automated and high-throughput workflows.
• Translate experimental goals into manufacturable process steps with materials scientists and engineers.

Skills

Cleanroom experience

Thin-film deposition

Photolithography

Etching

Metrology

Process development

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Materials Science or related field

MS/PhD preferred

Tools

Profilometry

Ellipsometry

SEM

Job description

As a Microfabrication Scientist on the Vacuum Synthesis team at Lila Sciences, you will serve as the primary contributor to the fabrication of prototype devices used to probe and characterize the properties of novel materials. Your hands-on expertise in cleanroom processing, with strengths in thin-film deposition, lithography, etching, and metrology, will contribute directly to Lila’s materials science programs focused on the predictive design of novel material families and functional thin-film systems.

In this role, you will design and build prototype test structures and devices that enable rapid and accurate assessment of material properties. Development of fabrication process flows may include non-standard approaches that shape how the platform builds and interrogates new material systems. The experimental outputs will feed directly into closed-loop discovery campaigns.

You will partner with materials scientists, device physicists, systems engineers, and machine learning scientists to develop and execute fabrication campaigns with high scientific rigor and velocity.

What You'll Be Building

• Design and fabricate prototype devices and test structures used to evaluate novel materials.
• Develop, optimize, and troubleshoot thin-film deposition recipes across diverse material systems.
• Execute cleanroom processes, including lithography, wet/dry etching, and thin-film deposition.
• Characterize films and devices using profilometry, ellipsometry, SEM, and electrical probing.
• Integrate fabrication processes into automated and high-throughput workflows.
• Translate experimental goals into manufacturable process steps with materials scientists and engineers.

What You'll Need to Succeed

• Bachelor’s degree in Materials Science, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Physics, or a closely related field; advanced degree (M.S. or Ph.D.) preferred.
• 5+ years of hands-on cleanroom experience in research, development, or manufacturing.
• Deep expertise in thin-film deposition, including recipe development and troubleshooting.
• Proficiency across photolithography, wet/dry etching, and thin-film deposition.
• Hands-on experience with metrology and characterization tools as part of process development.
• Track record implementing novel fabrication process flows when established recipes do not fit.

Bonus Points For

• Experience with epitaxial deposition techniques.
• Experience with device fabrication for electronic, photonic, MEMS, spintronic, or quantum applications.
• Proficiency in lift-off patterning and process selection for device and material requirements.
• Familiarity with high-throughput or combinatorial fabrication process integration.
• Proficiency in Python for scientific data analysis.

Compensation

We offer competitive base compensation with bonus potential and generous early-stage equity. Your final offer will reflect your background, expertise, and expected impact.

U.S. Benefits. Full-time U.S. employees receive a comprehensive benefits program including medical, dental, and vision coverage; employer-paid life and disability insurance; flexible time off with generous company wide holidays; paid parental leave; an educational assistance program; commuter benefits, including bike share memberships for office based employees; and a company subsidized lunch program.

International Benefits. Full-time employees outside the U.S. receive a comprehensive benefits program tailored to their region. USD salary ranges apply only to U.S.-based positions; international salaries are set to local market.

Expected Base Salary Range

$108,000 - $170,000 USD

About LILA

Lila Sciences is building Scientific Superintelligence™ to solve humankind's greatest challenges. We believe science is the most inspiring frontier for AI. Rather than hard-coding expert knowledge into tools, LILA builds systems that can learn for themselves.

LILA combines advanced AI models with proprietary AI Science Factory™ instruments into an operating system for science that executes the entire scientific method autonomously, accelerating discovery at unprecedented speed, scale, and impact across medicine, materials, and energy. Learn more at www.lila.ai.

Guided by our core values of truth, trust, curiosity, grit, and velocity, we move with startup speed while tackling problems of historic importance. If this sounds like an environment you'd love to work in, even if you don't meet every qualification listed above, we encourage you to apply.

Lila Sciences iscommitted to equal employment opportunityregardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

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