Optical Engineer

Langham Recruitment; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits & equity

Job summary

A leading technology firm in San Francisco is looking for an Optical Engineer to join its product engineering team. This role involves designing multi-element optical systems and validating their performance under real-world conditions. Ideal candidates will have strong optics fundamentals and experience with Zemax, Python, or MATLAB. Join a team focused on cutting-edge optical systems, where your designs will contribute to reliable and high-performance products. Competitive salary and benefits package offered.

Qualifications

• Strong fundamentals in optics, with hands-on experience designing multi-lens optical systems.
• Advanced proficiency with Zemax for optical design and performance analysis.
• Proficiency in Python or MATLAB for data processing and automation.

Responsibilities

• Design and optimize multi-element optical systems integrated with semiconductor light sources.
• Conduct tolerancing and sensitivity analyses aligned with manufacturing constraints.
• Collaborate closely with electrical and mechanical engineers on system-level trade-offs.

Skills

Optical system design

Opto-mechanical simulations

Zemax proficiency

Python or MATLAB proficiency

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

Education

M.S. in Optical Engineering, Physics, Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent

Tools

Zemax

SolidWorks

ANSYS

Job description

San Francisco Bay Area (Onsite) | $170–230K + Benefits & Equity

A privately held technology company developing advanced sensing hardware is seeking an Optical Engineer to join its core product engineering team. The company designs and builds compact, high-performance electro-optical systems used in demanding commercial and industrial environments where reliability, precision, and scalability are essential.

This role provides end-to-end ownership of optical subsystems, spanning early concept development and simulation through lab validation and release to manufacturing. It is well suited to an engineer who enjoys designing optics that must perform reliably outside of controlled laboratory conditions.

The Optical Engineer will be responsible for the design and validation of optical and opto-mechanical subsystems within a complex hardware platform.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and optimize multi-element optical systems integrated with semiconductor light sources
• Perform optical and opto-mechanical simulations to evaluate performance under environmental and mechanical stress conditions
• Conduct tolerancing and sensitivity analyses aligned with realistic manufacturing constraints
• Develop and refine optical alignment, calibration, and performance test methods
• Contribute to opto-mechanical concepts for next-generation hardware platforms
• Collaborate closely with electrical, mechanical, and systems engineers on system-level trade-offs
• Provide technical oversight for external optical vendors and consultants
• Support product qualification to meet stringent reliability and quality requirements
• Contribute to invention disclosures and internal technical documentation

Required Experience

• Strong fundamentals in optics, with hands-on experience designing multi-lens optical systems
• Advanced proficiency with Zemax (sequential and non-sequential) for optical design, tolerancing, and performance analysis
• Experience building and debugging optical laboratory test setups
• Comfort validating optical performance against real-world requirements, not simulations alone
• Proficiency in Python or MATLAB for analysis, automation, or data processing
• Experience working within cross-disciplinary hardware teams
• Exposure to managing optical component suppliers or external design partners

Nice to Have

• Experience with athermal optical design or STOP analysis
• Familiarity with mechanical design tools such as SolidWorks or ANSYS
• Background supporting optics intended for production deployment
• Experience in regulated or reliability-focused industries
• Prior work on LiDAR, active sensing, or time-of-flight optical systems
• M.S. in Optical Engineering, Physics, Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent