Principal Systems Engineer – Quantum Computing Systems

QuEra Computing Inc.; Boston (MA); Sur place; USD 150 000 - 230 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

QuEra Computing Inc. in Boston, MA seeks a Principal Systems Engineer to lead the Systems Engineering team for quantum computing systems.

The role interfaces with quantum scientists, hardware engineers, and control software, aiming to make the system coherent, buildable, and integrable as discoveries advance. The ideal candidate has deep experience in building complex hardware–software systems and thrives in a learning-driven R&D environment, collaborating across disciplines to drive structured

Qualifications

• Translate scientific goals into actionable engineering requirements while preserving necessary flexibility.
• Explicitly document uncertainty, assumptions, and open questions.
• Refine requirements as experimental results and understanding improve.

Responsabilités

• Bridge the gap between engineering tasks and quantum machine milestones.
• Make system architecture, integration status, and technical risk visible and actionable.
• Enable scientists and engineers to move faster together by reducing ambiguity, friction, and rework.
• Work closely with quantum scientists to understand how the machine is operated, tuned, and debugged in practice.

Connaissances

System engineering leadership

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

Requirements tracing

Hardware–software integration

Scientific/experimental collaboration

Description du poste

Principal Systems Engineer – Quantum Computing Systems at QuEra Computing, Boston, MA, USA. A lead-level full time position in the Systems Engineering team, listed under software engineering.

Summary We are seeking a Principal Systems Engineer to play a critical role in aligning engineering execution with scientific and machine-level progress in the development of large-scale quantum computers. This role sits at the intersection of quantum science, hardware engineering, and control software , with a primary mission to make the system coherent, buildable, and integrable as it evolves. Unlike traditional product environments, many system requirements in quantum computing are discovered through experimentation , not defined upfront. Success in this role requires deep collaboration with scientists, rapid learning, and the ability to introduce structure only where it accelerates progress . The ideal candidate brings extensive experience building complex hardware–software systems (e.g., aerospace, EVs, robotics, advanced instrumentation) and is motivated to apply systems engineering rigor in a learning-driven R&D environment , pairing closely with internal quantum experts. This is a technical leadership role with broad influence across teams. Authority comes from clarity, usefulness, and trust — not from gatekeeping or heavy process. Core Mission Bridge the gap between engineering tasks and quantum machine milestones Make system architecture, integration status, and technical risk visible and actionable Enable scientists and engineers to move faster together by reducing ambiguity, friction, and rework Help the organization evolve from ad-hoc integration to disciplined, scalable system development — without slowing discovery Responsibilities 1. System Understanding Through Scientific Partnership Work closely and continuously with quantum scientists to understand how the machine is actually operated, tuned, and debugged in practice. Spend significant time in the lab, observing experiments and participating in scientific discussions to absorb tacit system knowledge. Treat scientists as primary system knowledge holders , approaching requirement gathering as a lear

Requirements

• Facilitate theco-evolution of system requirementsas the machine progresses:
• Start with lightweight, provisional requirements
• Explicitly document uncertainty, assumptions, and open questions
• Refine requirements as experimental results and understanding improve
• Translate scientific goals (e.g., performance, stability, operability) into actionable engineering requirements while preserving necessary flexibility.
• Establish traceability between:
• machine-level goals
• subsystem requirements

Nice to Have

• Experience in aerospace, automotive, robotics, advanced instrumentation, or similar domains.
• Familiarity with model-based systems engineering (MBSE) concepts or tools.
• Experience working closely with research or experimental teams.
• Exposure to quantum technologies is a plus, butnot required.