RF Designer

Fidus Systems; United States; Remote; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical with dental and vision

401(k) with matching

Profit sharing

Job summary

Fidus Systems is seeking an experienced RF Designer to own RF subsystems across client programs, from architecture to manufacturable hardware. You will collaborate with FPGA/DSP, hardware, embedded software, and test teams to deliver high-frequency designs up to 40 GHz.

The role requires a strong background in RF/microwave engineering, hands-on lab capability, and clear communication with clients. Remote-friendly with occasional travel within North America.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or equivalent to start.
• Master’s in RF/microwave engineering is a plus for advanced work.
• Extensive RF/wireless hardware design experience is required.

Responsibilities

• Define RF architecture and frequency plan, LO, sampling, clocking, filtering, and line-up specs.
• Design Tx chains from baseband to up-conversion, including PA, AGC, and output protection.
• Design Rx chains with LNA, down-conversion, gain control, and protection.
• Model and budget NF, sensitivity, dynamic range, linearity, EVM, clock jitter.
• Select filters, mixers, circulators, isolators, and hybrids with vendors.
• Configure digital path with RFSoC IP, DUC/DDC, filtering, and sample-rate conversion.
• Collaborate with PCB layout and SI teams for compliant designs.
• Develop manufacturable features: calibration hooks, digital correction filters, ATE access.
• Verify performance with spectrum analyzers, VNAs, power meters, and lab setup.
• Prepare technical estimates and risk mitigation for client engagements.

Skills

RF design

Antenna familiarity

RF modeling

Schematic debugging

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Master’s in RF/microwave engineering (asset)

Tools

Keysight ADS

SystemVue

MATLAB/Simulink

Cadence AWR

Job description

Fidus is a global high-tech design firm headquartered in Ottawa, withadditionaldesign centres in Kitchener-Waterloo and San Jose. We specialize in leading-edge electronic product development, with hardware, RF/wireless, embedded software, FPGA/ASIC, and signal integrity teams working together to design and deliver next-generation products for clients in emerging technology markets.

Position Overview/Mandate:

The RF Designer owns complete RF subsystems on Fidus client programs — from the antenna port through the front-end, frequency conversion and data converters, that present into the DSP and/or FPGA fabric. You will set the RF architecture, build the frequency and sampling plans, design and model the transmit and receive lineups, and prove the performance on the bench, working at microwave frequencies up to 40 GHz.

This role suits an RF designer who has carried subsystems from architecture to characterized, manufacturable hardware, is ready to be the RF authority on a cross-functional team, and works directly with customers — taking pride in designs rigorously modeled before build and rigorously measured after.

Make an Impact with US:

You’ll collaborate across FPGA/DSP, hardware, embedded software, verification, SI/PI, PCB layout and mechanical/thermal design, delivering real products for our clients.

In practice, that means SatCom payloads, ground modems and portable terminals; GNSS and precision synchronization; radar and multi-sensor fusion; software defined radios; semiconductor characterization and test fixturing; industrial and private network radios; and medical telemetry.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Define the RF architecture and frequency plan — IF and LO selection, Nyquist zone/sampling plan, clocking, anti-alias/spurious filtering, and line-up specification.
• Design Tx chains from baseband through up-conversion — drivers, filters, power amplifiers to 10 W, ALC and detector-based output level control, and output protection.
• Design Rx chains, including digitally intensive sampling architectures — LNA lineups, down-conversion strategy, analog variable gain and AGC, interferer rejection, and input limiting and protection.
• Model and budget system performance: NF, sensitivity, dynamic range, linearity, EVM, and the LO and clock phase noise and jitter needed to support it.
• Specify and select filters, mixers, circulators, isolators, couplers, dividers and hybrids, including custom parts developed with third-party vendors.
• Configure the digital signal path — RFSoC hard IP, DUC/DDC, decimation and interpolation filters, sample rate conversion, and FIR synthesis for arbitrary amplitude and phase response.
• Drive RF and microwave PCB layout with our layout and signal integrity teams, designing for compliance from the outset.
• Build-in the features that make a subsystem manufacturable (e.g., factory calibration hooks, digital correction filters, and register access to enable ATE).
• Verify/characterize performance in the lab using spectrum and signal analyzers, VNAs, vector and analog signal generators, and power meters.
• Develop technical estimates and risk mitigation strategies, and work closely with clients to produce well-documented, maintainable designs that stand up to review.

Who You Are:

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or equivalent. A Master’s in RF/microwave engineering or communications is an asset.
• 8+ years designing RF and wireless hardware
• Familiarity with FDD and TDD techniques
• Experience interacting with FPGA, DSP, PCB Layout, and Signal Integrity designers
• Signal source and clocking design: PLL topology and loop filter design, VCO/DRO and LO multiplier specification, TCXO and VCXO selection, and phase noise and jitter specification and measurement.
• Filter and microwave component fluency — technology selection across printed, SAW/BAW/FBAR, ceramic resonator, discrete L/C, waveguide and cavity, plus circulators, isolators, couplers, dividers and hybrids — and experience specifying custom parts with vendors.
• Antenna familiarity: selection, interface specification and vendor management. Antenna element or array design is not required for this role.
• Expert-level use of RF modeling and simulation tools such as Keysight ADS with non-linear and EM solvers, SystemVue, and MATLAB/Simulink, or equivalents such as Cadence AWR.
• Hands-on lab capability with microwave test equipment
• Experience with RF schematic capture, PCB layout collaboration, and RF/microwave component selection, and the ability to debug HW/RF/FPGA integration from schematics and datasheets.
• Knowledge of various communication and wireless standards
• Excellent communication skills and fluency in English, with the ability to present technical findings and trade-offs concisely to internal teams and clients.
• Strong technical judgment with an emphasis on quality and rigor, a willingness to learn new technologies, and readiness for occasional travel (typically within North America) to support client engagements.

Nice to Have:

• Phased array and beamforming design, including collaboration with antenna engineers
• DPD, CFR, and envelope tracking
• Link budget analysis — terrestrial (with propagation models), MIMO, or orbital SatCom
• Regulatory certification experience — FCC, ISED, or ETSI transmitter certification/filings
• Direct-RF sampling architectures on AMD Zynq RFSoC or Versal devices

Location and travel:

Fully remote role and requires around 15% travel, including domestic and international.

Benefits

Our competitive compensation package also includes a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, and vision plans, matching 401(k) contributions, annual profit-sharing bonus, along with other supplementary benefits.

We also recognize that candidates show interest throughout different career stages and welcome all applications. When there is a great fit, the level of the role may be shifted as applicable.

About Fidus & Why Work Here

Since 2001, Fidus has completed over 4,000 projects for more than 400 customers across industries including Telecom/Datacom, Aerospace & Defence, Consumer, Semiconductors, Industrial/Automotive Controls, and Medical. As a Premier Adaptive Computing Partner for AMD North America, we combine deep technicalexpertisewith industry-leading tools to solve complex design challenges.

Fidus designs high-speed, high-complexity electronic systems using emerging technologies, often well before they reach the broader market.

Our work spans space and satellitesystems, next-generation communications and networking, high-performance compute and storage platforms, advanced video and imaging, and industrial, medical, and automotive systems. We are not tied toa single productor industry—our work follows the technology, not just one roadmap.

At Fidus, collaboration is at the core of how we work. We value openness, trust, and shared ownership, and we create an environment where people are encouraged to contribute ideas, learn from one another, and have a meaningful impact through the work they do.

Thank you for your interest in Fidus. We welcome and encourage diverse candidates to apply. Accommodations are available upon request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the selection process. Fidus is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer.