Probe Engineer

Pioneer Labs; Emeryville (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Astera Neuro in Emeryville, CA seeks a probe engineer to design flexible neural probes, insertion needles, and precision robotics enabling large-scale, micron-precision neural recording. You will work across mechanical design, microfabrication, and control to take hardware from concept through validation and into a recording rig.

The role spans multiple levels, with responsibilities across design decisions, fabrication strategy, and mentoring; PhD/MS/BS in relevant fields welcomed.

Qualifications

• Hands-on engineering across mechanical design and prototyping.
• Experience building precision electromechanical or robotic systems.
• Familiarity with microfabrication and thin-film processes.
• Comfort with real-time control and software (Python plus C/C++).
• Knowledge of the signal-acquisition chain and collaborating with electronics engineers.
• Interest in neuroscience instrumentation and tissue-mechanics constraints.

Responsibilities

• Design flexible, high-density neural probes covering layout through fabrication and encapsulation.
• Build probe-to-chip integration and the readout signal chain with low-noise front-end.
• Design insertion needles and needle-pincher mechanisms for precise placement.
• Develop insertion strategies to place flexible threads into soft tissue.
• Build a precision insertion robot with multi-axis motion and real-time control.
• Develop machine-vision guidance to locate targets and avoid vasculature.
• Build electrode characterization and process pipelines for manufacturability.

Skills

Mechanical design

Precision robotics

Microfabrication

Real-time control

Signal acquisition

Neuroscience instruments

Education

PhD, MS, or BS in related field

Tools

CAD software

Benchtop fabrication tools

Cleanroom equipment

Job description

Company Overview

Astera Neuro is a philanthropically funded research organization within the Astera Institute, working to decipher and ultimately write the neural codes underlying perception, thought, behavior, and internal state. The tools this requires do not yet exist, so we are assembling a founding team of experimental neuroscientists, computational scientists, and engineers to build them, from recording and interface hardware to software and computational methods, and to use them to study neural activity at unprecedented scale, with direct promise for treating neurological and psychiatric disease. We pursue high-risk, high-reward science in a collaborative, well-resourced environment with competitive compensation, and share our tools, data, and discoveries openly under Astera's Open Science Policy.

Position Summary

Working closely with our experimental, surgical, and software teams, probe engineers here design and build the recording hardware: the probes, insertion mechanisms, and robotics that determine how much of the brain we can see, and how well.

The role spans three tightly coupled problems: the probe (thin, flexible, high-density electrode arrays), the needle (the micro-machined tool that delivers a probe to its target without damage), and the robot (the precision system that places many probes quickly, accurately, and repeatedly while avoiding vasculature). You will move fluidly across mechanical design, microfabrication, and control, and you will own hardware from initial concept through benchtop validation and into the recording rig.

We are hiring at multiple levels. As an Engineer, you will lead well-defined hardware projects with regular guidance. As a Senior Engineer, you will own hardware lines end-to-end, drive design decisions, and set fabrication and test strategy. As a Principal Engineer, you will define the probe and robotics roadmap, mentor engineers, and shape how mechanical, fabrication, and control work fit together at Astera. We will calibrate scope and title to your experience.

What You'll Do

• Design flexible, high-density neural probes: thin-film polymer arrays (polyimide, Parylene C, or comparable) patterned with hundreds to thousands of microelectrodes, from layout through fabrication and encapsulation.
• Build probe-to-chip integration and the readout signal chain, bonding high-density electrode arrays to amplifier and acquisition electronics, and developing the low-noise front-end that amplifies, digitizes, and streams microvolt neural signals to the acquisition system.
• Design insertion needles and needle-pincher mechanisms: micro-machined and electrochemically etched tools that grasp, insert, and release flexible probes at micron-scale placement accuracy.
• Develop insertion strategies that solve the hard mechanics of placing a flexible thread into soft tissue: managing bending stiffness and buckling, temporarily stiffening the probe for insertion, and mitigating the forces that build up across many closely spaced insertions.
• Build a precision insertion robot: multi-axis motion, servo and linear-motor drives, and the real-time control that makes placement fast, accurate, and repeatable.
• Develop machine-vision guidance for the robot: imaging and computer vision that locate targets, guide the needle to them, and avoid surface vasculature during insertion.
• Build electrode characterization and process pipelines: impedance and electrochemistry (e.g., Pt, PEDOT coatings), yield, and reliability testing that turn a working prototype into a manufacturable part.

Who You Are

Required:

• Strong hands‑on engineering across mechanical design and prototyping; you move fluently between CAD, the machine shop, and the benchtop.
• Experience building precision electromechanical or robotic systems (multi‑axis motion, servo/linear‑motor control, tight tolerance stacks).
• Familiarity with microfabrication and thin‑film processes (photolithography, deposition, etching, cleanroom work), or a demonstrated ability to pick them up fast.
• Comfort with real‑time control and the software that drives hardware (Python plus C/C++ or comparable; embedded, FPGA, or RTOS a plus).
• Working knowledge of the signal‑acquisition chain (how low‑level analog signals are amplified, digitized, and acquired) and comfort collaborating with electronics engineers on it.
• Genuine interest in building instruments for neuroscience, and in the tissue‑mechanics constraints that make this problem hard.

Preferred/Nice to Have:

• Flexible/thin‑film electrode microfabrication (polyimide, Parylene C, PDMS) and electrode electrochemistry.
• Micro‑machining and electrochemical etching of fine metal tooling (e.g., tungsten, tungsten‑rhenium).
• Low‑noise analog/mixed‑signal front‑end design for recording microvolt‑scale signals (amplification, filtering, multiplexing, digitization).
• High‑density interconnect and packaging: bonding fine‑pitch electrode arrays to electronics (e.g., flip‑chip, wire bonding, ACF, or comparable).
• Precision motion control, machine vision, or real‑time closed‑loop robotics.
• Surgical or medical‑device hardware, including sterilization, sterile workflow, and design under regulatory constraints.
• Neural interfaces, MEMS sensors, or other implantable devices.
• Contributions to open‑source hardware, instrumentation, or scientific‑computing projects.

Additionally Expected at Senior / Principal Level:

• A track record of taking hardware from concept to working, validated device: owning design tradeoffs, fabrication, and test.
• Experience making and defending tradeoffs across precision, reliability, manufacturability, and biocompatibility.
• Comfort working across the stack, from mechanical design and fabrication to control software and system integration.
• A history of mentoring engineers or leading technical initiatives (Principal level).

Education

PhD, MS, or BS with 3 to 12+ years of experience. Backgrounds in mechanical, electrical, biomedical, or materials engineering, mechatronics, robotics, applied physics, MEMS/microfabrication, or related fields are all welcome. Graduate research experience is a plus but not required. We value demonstrated skill and relevant experience above credentials.

Compensation

The posted salary range is based on location in the Bay Area. The successful candidate will receive a competitive compensation package, commensurate with their experience and location.

Why Join Us

Astera Neuro is hiring a probe engineer to design the flexible neural probes, insertion needles, and precision robotics that make large-scale recording possible: devices that place thousands of electrodes with micron precision while sparing the tissue around them.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity and inclusion.