Principal Electrical Engineer

Northwoodspace; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

Northwood Space seeks a Principal Electrical Engineer to drive digital compute and power electronics for advanced, high-rate satellite communications systems. You will lead end-to-end board design, collaborate with RF, FPGA, and firmware teams, and shepherd prototypes through field testing and production.

The role requires a strong background in high-speed digital design, EMI/EMC troubleshooting, and experience with multi-layer PCBs and FPGAs.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• 8+ years of professional experience in electrical design.
• End-to-end board design experience from architecture to production.
• Experience with mixed-signal electronics design and multilayer PCBs.
• Experience with troubleshooting EMI/EMC, either conducted or radiated.

Responsibilities

• Drive electrical design for high-speed digital communication systems, implementing RF and mixed-signal designs in complex, multilayer PCBs.
• Work with 100G high speed networking, complex digital power trees, and drive system trades for architecture decisions.
• Perform schematic capture, layout, and bring-up on a variety of different digital systems including FPGAs, microcontrollers, and their peripherals.
• Collaborate across hardware and software teams with RF engineers, antenna engineers, FPGA engineers, and firmware engineers to optimize system performance and overall design.
• Test prototypes and assess performance in the lab and in the field.
• Work with production teams to make testable and manufacturable products that we can integrate in-house.

Skills

Electrical design

Mixed-signal design

PCB layout

EMI/EMC troubleshooting

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

FPGA

Oscilloscopes

Logic analyzers

Job description

About Northwood:

Northwood is a modern space infrastructure company bringing the benefits of space to the masses through advanced communications technology. We are building a global network of phased array ground stations that enable real-time, reliable communication for satellite missions such as national security, global connectivity, and disaster response. With a vertically integrated approach, Northwood designs, builds, and rapidly deploys scalable systems that power the next generation of space missions. If you like solving complex challenges and seeing your work deployed around the world with real impact, Northwood is the place to do it.

Role:

Northwood is looking for a Principal Electrical Engineer to help drive the development of our digital compute and power electronics. These complex digital systems ensure that our antennas can meet high-rate processing needs no matter where they are deployed around the world. Our hardware team prioritizes excellent engineering, building end products that are known for their reliability, scalability, and cost.

Responsibilities:

• Drive electrical design for high-speed digital communication systems, implementing RF and mixed-signal designs in complex, multilayer PCBs
• Work with 100G high speed networking, complex digital power trees, and drive system trades for architecture decisions
• Perform schematic capture, layout, and bring-up on a variety of different digital systems including FPGAs, microcontrollers, and their associated peripherals
• Collaborate across hardware and software teams with RF engineers, antenna engineers, FPGA engineers, and firmware engineers to optimize system performance and overall design
• Test prototypes and assess performance in the lab and in the field
• Work with production teams to make testable and manufacturable products that we can integrate in-house

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field
• 8+ years of professional experience in electrical design
• Experience with end-to-end board design, from architecture and component selection through schematic capture, PCB layout, bring-up, debug, and production
• Experience with mixed-signal electronics design and complex multilayer PCBs, including stack-up definition and material selection
• Experience with troubleshooting EMI/EMC, either conducted or radiated

Preferred Qualifications:

• High-speed digital design experience with interfaces such as multi-gigabit SerDes, DDR, JESD204B/C, and 10/100G Ethernet, including signal and power integrity analysis
• Experience with FPGA-or processor-based systems and high-speed data converters
• Deep understanding of signal integrity, power integrity, EMI/EMC mitigation, PCB stack-up definition, and high-performance board layout practices
• Hands-on experience debugging complex hardware systems using advanced lab instrumentation and driving root-cause analysis across board and system levels
• Ability to lead cross-functional technical efforts, mentor junior engineers, and make sound engineering tradeoffs in fast-paced development environments

Additional Information:

If you need a reasonable accommodation as part of your application for employment or interviews with us, please let us know.

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Northwood Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Northwood Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.