Physicist/Systems Analyst

MIT Lincoln Laboratory; Lexington (MA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 187,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health plans

MIT-funded pension

Matching 401K

Paid leave (vacation, sick, parental)

Tuition reimbursement and continuing-

Job summary

MIT Lincoln Laboratory is seeking a Physicist/Systems Analyst, Technical Staff, to join multidisciplinary teams tackling Cyber-Electromagnetic Warfare. You will apply RF, cyber, AI/ML, and modeling techniques to challenging environments and help transition concepts from R&D to fielded capabilities.

The role involves algorithm/software development, data analysis, and tight collaboration with sponsors, acquisition partners, and operational users.

Qualifications

• PhD in physics, applied physics, EE, engineering physics, applied math, data science, or related field; or Master’s with 5+ years of relevant experience.
• Strong foundation in electromagnetics, waves/propagation, statistical or computational physics.
• Ability to rapidly learn new technical areas and apply physics to cyber-electromagnetic problems.
• Experience developing quantitative models, analysis, or experiments on complex physical systems.
• Proficiency in programming and scientific computing tools (Python, MATLAB, C, C++, Julia).
• Ability to clearly communicate results to varied audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to work in multidisciplinary teams and obtain security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Develop and transition advanced cyber-electromagnetic capabilities into fieldable solutions.
• Evaluate operational utility and risk; contribute to acquisition and transition planning.
• Communicate results via reports, briefings, and interactions with sponsors and stakeholders.
• Develop algorithms and software; analyze data from experiments, simulations, or field tests.
• Lead technical tasks and mentor junior staff as experience grows.

Skills

Programming deep knowledge

Python

MATLAB

C

C++

Julia

Learning new technical areas

Communication of technical results

Team collaboration

Security clearance readiness

Education

PhD in physics or related technical field

Master’s degree +5 years relevant experience

Tools

Python

MATLAB

C

C++

Julia

Job description

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The Cyber-Physical Systems Group develops advanced Cyber-Electromagnetic Warfare capabilities and supports their acquisition, integration, and operational transition across the Department of War and Intelligence Community. The Group conducts research and development at the intersection of cyber operations, electronic warfare, radio-frequency systems, and artificial intelligence to address challenging national-security mission needs.

A central element of the Group’s mission is transitioning advanced technology into operational use. This includes developing and evaluating prototype capabilities; integrating them with other non-kinetic effects; conducting field tests and operational experiments; and supporting larger acquisition, integration, and operationalization programs. The Group collaborates closely with sponsors, operational users, acquisition organizations, and partners across the Laboratory, government, industry, and academia to ensure that technical innovations address real mission needs and can be effectively deployed.

The Group is seeking a Physicist/Systems Analyst, Technical Staff, to contribute to multidisciplinary teams developing, assessing, and transitioning advanced Cyber-Electromagnetic Warfare capabilities. The successful candidate will apply technical expertise in RF systems, cyber operations, artificial intelligence, machine learning, modeling and simulation, or related fields to challenging problems involving complex electromagnetic and cyber environments.

The successful candidate will help transition technical concepts from research and development into fieldable capabilities. This work may include supporting integration with government and industry systems, evaluating operational utility and technical risk, and contributing to acquisition and operational transition planning. The candidate will be expected to communicate technical results clearly through reports, briefings, and discussions with technical teams, program managers, acquisition organizations, and operational stakeholders. Responsibilities may include developing algorithms and software; analyzing experimental, simulated, or operationally collected data; designing and executing evaluations; and assessing system performance in representative environments.

We seek candidates with a demonstrated ability to learn new technical areas rapidly, contribute effectively to multidisciplinary teams, and apply rigorous technical methods to national-security mission problems. As the candidate gains experience, they will have opportunities to lead technical tasks, develop research directions, engage directly with sponsors and users, and lead major analyses and transition activities.

Required Qualifications

• Doctorate in physics, applied physics, electrical engineering, engineering physics, applied mathematics, data science, systems engineering, or a related technical field. In lieu of a doctorate, a master’s degree in one of these fields with at least five years of relevant technical experience will be considered.
• Strong foundation in one or more relevant physics disciplines, such as electromagnetics, waves and propagation, statistical physics, or computational physics.
• Ability to rapidly learn new technical areas and apply fundamental physical principles to challenging cyber-electromagnetic and national-security mission problems.
• Experience developing quantitative models, conducting scientific analysis, or designing experiments to investigate complex physical systems.
• Proficiency in programming languages and scientific-computing tools used for modeling, simulation, data analysis, or prototype development, such as Python, MATLAB, C, C++, Julia, or similar languages.
• Ability to communicate technical concepts, analysis results, and recommendations clearly and concisely to audiences with varied technical backgrounds.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary technical team.
• Ability to obtain and maintain the security clearance required for the position.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience in one or more of the following areas is desirable:

• Cyber operations, cyber mission engineering, cyber defense, vulnerability research, protocol analysis, or embedded systems.
• Electronic warfare, electromagnetic-spectrum operations, RF sensing, signals intelligence, software-defined radio, wireless communications, or spectrum monitoring.
• RF signal processing, including modulation recognition, signal detection, classification, direction finding, geolocation, fingerprinting, emitter identification, waveform analysis, or communications characterization.
• RF machine learning, including deep learning for RF data, representation learning, anomaly detection, classification, sensor fusion, or learning from limited, noisy, or nonstationary data.
• Artificial intelligence and machine learning, including deep learning, probabilistic methods, reinforcement learning, generative models, autonomous systems, or AI-enabled decision support.
• Modeling, simulation, and analysis of cyber, RF, communications, sensing, or cyber-electromagnetic operational environments.
• Systems engineering, technology maturation, acquisition support, capability transition, or operationalization of advanced technical capabilities.
• Experience preparing technical reports, publications, sponsor briefings, or presentations for government, acquisition, and operational audiences.

Technical Staff 5/6 Job Overview

MIT Lincoln Laboratory Technical Staff provide critical support and expert multi-domain or new-domain innovative research supporting the Laboratory’s national security mission. They prototype state-of-the-art technology solutions and engage across the program lifecycle, leading projects or major/multiple technical workstreams in partnership with project, program and team/Group leaders. As a Technical Staff member, you will lead complex technical efforts requiring deep expertise, sound judgment, with the ability to successfully navigate technical complexity. Depending on the level, you will lead projects, major workstreams, complex programs, multi-program initiatives, or technical portfolios on extraordinary technology prototype efforts and creative new ideas and approaches that support critical mission needs. Depending on the level, you will translate broad Group strategy into clearly defined research or executional deliverables. Through integrating your deep technical expertise across disciplines, you consistently drive high-quality mission outcomes.

As a successful candidate, you will connect deep and diverse technical expertise with broader Laboratory objectives, perform independent research, develop creative approaches, and translate broad strategy into executable plans. You will work across or guide multidisciplinary teams through ambiguous trade-offs; helping develop and execute programs, creating briefings and reports, and often interfacing with sponsors. You effectively support sponsor, mission-partner, and Laboratory leadership’s needs through daily or weekly technical briefings, program documentation, proposals, and may conduct advanced capability road mapping and development. You will also guide and mentor Associate Technical Staff, Assistant Technical Staff, and other technical support personnel.

Technical Staff 5/6 Job Duties & Responsibilities

• Lead projects, complex programs, major technical workstreams, multi-program initiatives, or technical portfolios involving multidisciplinary development, analysis, prototyping, integration, testing, evaluation, and technology transition.
• Apply deep technical expertise and systems-level judgment to highly complex and ambiguous problems, evaluating alternatives, trade-offs, risks, stakeholder needs, and mission implications.
• Translate broad or unclear objectives into actionable technical plans and influence program direction, architectures, systems, priorities, and roadmaps across teams, Groups, or mission areas.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, sponsors, mission partners, and internal leaders to align priorities, resolve dependencies, and guide decisions and deliverables.Assess and improve technical tools, processes, methods, documentation, execution practices, and organizational capability.
• Serve as a technical resource and mentor by reviewing work, framing trade-offs and risks, and developing staff and emerging leaders.
• Contribute substantially to papers, reports, presentations, proposals, grants, roadmaps, and other materials that advance mission outcomes and technical direction.

Technical Staff 5/6 Minimum Qualifications

Candidates will be considered for the appropriate level based on their education, experience, demonstrated technical expertise and breadth, leadership responsibilities, and the scale and complexity of programs or technical efforts they have led.

Level 5 – Technical Staff

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM discipline or other relevant technical field and typically 6+ years of relevant experience; or Master’s degree and typically 4+ years of relevant experience; or PhD and typically 0+ years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Diverse technical expertise with demonstrated ability to adapt that expertise to unfamiliar or emerging disciplines, systems, mission areas, or methods.
• Established education, skills, and experience demonstrating the ability to apply significant technical judgment to broad challenges requiring integration across related systems or methods.
• Demonstrated ability to lead projects or major workstreams and deliver complex technical outcomes.
• Experience evaluating trade-offs, recommending paths forward, and adapting technical approaches to evolving project needs.
• Demonstrated mentorship, collaboration, and ability to communicate recommendations, risks, and technical findings to varied audiences.
• Experience contributing to technical reports, papers, presentations, proposals, or other formal technical deliverables.

Level 6 – Technical Staff

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM discipline or other relevant technical field and typically 8+ years of relevant experience; or Master’s degree and typically 6+ years of relevant experience; or PhD and typically 2+ years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Deep and diverse technical expertise with demonstrated ability to integrate knowledge across domains and establish direction in evolving systems or mission areas.
• Established education, skills, and experience demonstrating the ability to incorporate technical judgment, program context, and stakeholder input to solve broad technical challenges.
• Proven experience leading complex programs, significant program elements, or multi-team technical efforts.
• Demonstrated ability to evaluate alternatives, manage technical ambiguity, and influence decisions across teams or stakeholder groups.
• Strong record of mentorship, collaboration, technical communication, and contribution to team or Group capability development.
• Experience contributing to proposals, publications, technical reports, presentations, or other materials that shape program direction or technical initiatives.

Technical Staff 5 Hiring Range:$140,000 - $187,000
Technical Staff 6 Hiring Range: $155,000 - $207,000
Disclaimer: MIT Lincoln Laboratory provides a typical hiring range as a good faith estimate of what we reasonably expect to offer for this position at the time of posting. The final salary offered to a selected candidate will depend on various factors, including—but not limited to—the scope and responsibilities of the role, the candidate’s experience, skills and education/training, internal equity considerations and applicable legal requirements. This range reflects base salary only and does not include additional forms of compensation or benefits.

At MIT Lincoln Laboratory, our exceptional career opportunities include many outstanding benefits to help you stay healthy, feel supported, and enjoy a fulfilling work-life balance. Benefits offered to employees include:

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision plans
• MIT-funded pension
• Matching 401K
• Paid leave (including vacation, sick, parental, military, etc.)
• Tuition reimbursement and continuing education programs

Selected candidate will be subject to a pre-employment background investigation and must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret level DoD security clearance.

MIT Lincoln Laboratory is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, veteran status, disability status, or genetic information; U.S. citizenship is required.