Radio Frequency Engineer

Autonomai Recruitment; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Autonomai Recruitment in Chicago, IL or Austin, TX seeks an experienced RF Hardware Engineer to join a high-performance wireless systems team. This hands-on role covers the full RF hardware lifecycle, from architecture to production.

The ideal candidate has 5+ years of hands-on RF engineering experience, with broad RF stack skills. You’ll work with Python, SDRs, and FPGA-based radio platforms, and collaborate with top engineers on bespoke wireless infrastructure.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on RF engineering experience.
• Experience across the full RF stack beyond a single component is preferred.
• Experience with Python, SDRs, FPGA-based radio platforms is a plus.

Responsibilities

• RF/analog system architecture and block-level design.
• Transmit and receive chains design and optimization.
• RF PCB design, layout considerations and board bring-up.
• Lab characterization using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators and oscilloscopes.
• Prototype, validation, field testing and production.
• Working with external vendors and specialist design partners.

Skills

RF design

Schematic design

Lab characterization

Python

FPGA platforms

Signal integrity

Education

BS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering

Tools

VNAs

Spectrum analyzers

Oscilloscopes

FPGA toolchains

Job description

RF Hardware Engineer | High-Performance Wireless Systems

Chicago, IL or Austin, TX.

What if your RF engineering work wasn't constrained by mass-market product margins, manufacturing millions of identical units, or incremental improvements to the same commercial platform?

I'm working with a world-leading quantitative technology firm building highly specialized wireless systems where performance is the primary objective.

They're looking for an experienced RF Hardware Engineer to join a deeply technical engineering group developing radio systems from the ground up.

This is a genuinely hands-on position spanning the full RF hardware lifecycle, including:

• RF/analog system architecture and block-level design
• Transmit and receive chains
• RF front-end design and optimization
• Schematic design and review
• RF PCB design, layout considerations and board bring-up
• Filters, amplifiers, mixers, oscillators and frequency conversion
• Link budgets, noise, linearity, interference and signal integrity
• Lab characterization using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators and oscilloscopes
• Prototype, validation, field testing and production
• Working with external vendors and specialist design partners

The interesting part is the environment.

Rather than designing another consumer device, you'll be working alongside exceptional engineers, researchers and technologists on bespoke wireless infrastructure where latency, reliability and raw system performance have direct real-world value.

You'll have the freedom to investigate difficult technical problems properly, experiment with new approaches and optimize systems beyond the constraints you'd typically encounter in commercial hardware development.

What we're looking for

You'll likely have 5+ years of hands-on RF engineering experience and, importantly, experience beyond one narrow piece of the RF stack.

Strong backgrounds could come from:

Aerospace & Defence | Wireless Communications | SATCOM | Radar | Telecoms | SDR | Consumer Electronics | RF Test & Measurement | Advanced R&D

Experience with Python, SDRs, FPGA-based radio platforms or high-performance communications systems would be particularly interesting, but isn't essential.

BS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering, RF Engineering, Physics or a related discipline preferred.

Why consider it?

This is an opportunity to move into an engineering environment with enormous technical resources, exceptionally talented colleagues and a culture built around solving difficult problems.

No previous financial or trading experience is required.

If you've spent your career building RF systems and want to see what happens when those skills are applied in an entirely different, performance-driven industry, I'd be interested in speaking.

Chicago, IL or Austin, TX.

Highly competitive base + significant performance bonus

RF systems, wireless infrastructure and radio hardware