Power Electronics Engineer

Fermilab; Batavia (IL); On-site; USD 109,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, Vision benefits

Paid time off

Life insurance

Disability insurance

Retirement benefits

Onsite day care

Job summary

Join the Fermilab team in Batavia, IL as a Power Electronics Engineer to design, build, and maintain power supplies for the accelerator complex. You will create simulations, edit PLC programs, capture schematics, and provide technical direction to engineers and technicians.

The role involves extensive hands-on work with high power systems, LOTO procedures, and contributing to projects like LBNF, PIP-II, ACORN and Mu2e, with onsite work predominating and occasional telecommuting allowed in

Qualifications

• Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, or a related field, or a foreign equivalent.
• 3 years of relevant experience in power electronics engineering, including at least 1 year performing high-voltage measurements with hi-pot testers.
• Experience in calculating power supply requirements using LTSpice, hand calculations, MATLAB/Octave, ETAP and COMSOL.
• Experience operating and maintaining AC-DC power supplies and developing simulations of magnet power systems.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain power supplies for use in the Fermilab accelerator complex.
• Create simulations in LTSpice, MATLAB, and ETAP to design and verify electrical system designs.
• Simulate systems in COMSOL to provide additional details of system performance.
• Create, edit and maintain PLC programs using RSLogix 500 for numerous power systems.
• Capture schematics in Altium to begin the process of circuit board creation.
• Provide technical direction to PCB drafters, early career engineers and technicians.
• Draft mechanical and electrical system drawings using AutoCAD.
• Provide technical direction and guidance for technicians who are building and/or maintaining equipment.
• Write specifications for various pieces of equipment including transformers, power supplies, capacitors, and inductors.
• Contribute to vendors’ technical evaluations.
• Respond to call-ins to support operations as needed to keep the accelerators running with good reliability.
• Design new equipment for projects, including LBNF, PIP-II, ACORN and Mu2e.
• Perform Lock Out Tag Out (LOTO) and write LOTO procedures to ensure safe operation and maintenance of equipment.
• Perform operational, hands-on support activities on high power system electronics, including analog sampling and regulation, digital status and control, system timing and triggering, and component interlocks.

Skills

hi-pot measurements

Power supply calculations

magnet power system simulations

Operating AC-DC power supplies

Education

Master's degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

LTSpice

MATLAB/Octave

ETAP

COMSOL

RSLogix 500

Altium

AutoCAD

Job description

The expected hiring range for this position is:

Please note that the pay range information is a general guideline only. The pay offered to a selected candidate will be determined based on factors such the scope and responsibilities of the position, qualifications of the selected candidate, business considerations, internal equity, and external market pay for comparable jobs.

The expected hiring range for this position is: $109,408 - $129,500.

About the Role

Join the Fermilab team at the Accelerator Directorate (AD) as a Power Electronics Engineer! In this role, you will design, build, and maintain power supplies for use in the Fermilab accelerator complex for projects including LBNF, PIP-II, ACORN, and Mu2e.

What your day-to-day as a Power Electronics Engineer at Fermilab will look like

• Design, build, and maintain power supplies for use in the Fermilab accelerator complex.
• Create simulations in LTSpice, MATLAB, and ETAP to design and verify electrical system designs.
• Simulate systems in COMSOL to provide additional details of system performance.
• Create, edit and maintain PLC programs using RSLogix 500 for numerous power systems.
• Capture schematics in Altium to begin the process of circuit board creation.
• Provide technical direction to PCB drafters, early career engineers and technicians.
• Draft mechanical and electrical system drawings using AutoCAD.
• Provide technical direction and guidance for technicians who are building and/or maintaining equipment.
• Write specifications for various pieces of equipment including transformers, power supplies, capacitors, and inductors.
• Contribute to vendors’ technical evaluations.
• Respond to call-ins to support operations as needed to keep the accelerators running with good reliability.
• Design new equipment for projects, including LBNF, PIP-II, ACORN and Mu2e.
• Perform Lock Out Tag Out (LOTO) and write LOTO procedures to ensure safe operation and maintenance of equipment.
• Perform operational, hands-on support activities on high power system electronics, including analog sampling and regulation, digital status and control, system timing and triggering, and component interlocks.

Qualifications

Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, or a related field, or a foreign equivalent, and 3 years of relevant experience in power electronics engineering, including at least 1 (one) year of experience in: (1) Performing high-voltage measurements with hi-pot testers; (2) Calculating power supply requirements using LTSpice, hand calculations, MATLAB/Octave, ETAP and COMSOL; (3) Operating and maintaining AC-DC power supplies; and (4) Developing simulations of magnet power systems.

Work Arrangement

Please note that the described work arrangement is subject to change based on business needs and is not guaranteed to be final.

The job responsibilities of this position are primarily onsite. In case of very occasional telecommuting, it may be allowed under special circumstances and only from anywhere in the US.

Travel

Up to 5 weeks of domestic and/or international travel to witness test equipment and evaluate potential vendors.

Benefits/Perks

Fermilab offers a competitive and comprehensive benefits program, including:

• Medical, Dental, Vision and Flexible Spending Accounts
• Paid time off
• Life insurance
• Short and Long-term disability insurance
• Retirement benefits
• Onsite day care

Why Fermilab

Fermilab is America’s premier laboratory for particle physics and accelerator research, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. We support discovery science experiments in Illinois and locations around the world, including deep underground mines in South Dakota and Canada, mountaintops in Arizona and Chile, CERN in Europe and the South Pole.

Pre-Employment Screening

Drug-Free Workplace & Pre-Employment Screening

Fermilab is dedicated to fostering a safe, productive and drug-free environment. An offer of employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a background check and drug screening.

HSPD-12

In accordance with Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) new employees are required to obtain and maintain a HSPD-12 Personal Identity Verification (PIV) Credential. To obtain this credential, new employees must successfully complete and pass a federal background check investigation. This investigation includes a declaration of illegal drug activities, including use, supply, possession, or manufacture. This includes marijuana and cannabis derivatives, which are still considered illegal under federal law, regardless of state laws. Failure to obtain or maintain such government access authorization could result in the withdrawal of a job offer or future termination of employment.

Foreign Government Sponsored Activities

Fermilab employees, and certain guest researchers and contractors, are subject to particular restrictions related to participation in Foreign Government Sponsored or Affiliated Activities, as defined and detailed in United States Department of Energy Order 486.1A. Such individuals will be asked to disclose any participation for review by Fermilab's Office of General Counsel.

REAL-ID Requirement for access to Fermilab Campus

Fermilab requires all members of the public to produce a REAL-ID, or equivalent, to access the Fermilab Campus for interviews or career events. A list of acceptable forms of ID can be found here: https://get-connected.fnal.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/REALID-Documents.pdf. If a candidate is selected for an interview but does not possess any of the equivalent documents, we may schedule a virtual interview.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Fermilab is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, genetic information, and other legally protected categories.