RF Engineer

Darwin Recruitment; California; On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Fully paid medical cover (employees)

Dental and vision coverage

401k matching

Job summary

Darwin Recruitment in Los Angeles, CA, is seeking an Spacecraft RF Engineer to own RF architecture, design boards and lead RF testing for space missions. This in-office role requires 5+ years of aerospace hardware experience and the ability to obtain US DoD Top Secret clearance.

You will guide test setups, grounding, and ensure compliance with FCC/NTIA while delivering clean, integrated RF systems for national security and science missions.

Qualifications

• Degree in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, or similar.
• 5+ years of hands-on aerospace hardware experience.
• Strong experience with link budgets and spacecraft communications subsystems.
• Proficient with Altium or KiCad and RF test equipment.
• Experience in clean room, ESD, and RF hardware integration.

Responsibilities

• Lead RF system architecture, link budget analysis and communications subsystem integration.
• Design and route custom PCBs that interface with other spacecraft subsystems.
• Run EMI/EMC analysis and testing across the whole spacecraft.
• Lead magnetic cleanliness, including dipole modelling, stray field budgeting and hands on magnetic survey testing on flight hardware.
• Make sure designs meet FCC and NTIA requirements.
• Document design processes and test results.
• Guide other engineers on test configurations and grounding.

Skills

RF system design

Link budgets

EMI/EMC testing

RF test equipment

Grounding practices

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical or Aerospace Engineering

Tools

Altium

KiCad

Oscilloscopes

Soldering & rework

Job description

Spacecraft RF Engineer

Los Angeles, CA | Full time, in office | Permanent

Why this role exists

Our client builds custom spacecraft for national security and science missions, and they build them fast. Every mission gets its own design, including its communications system. Some of those missions carry payloads that are sensitive to magnetic fields. They need an engineer who can own the RF system and keep the whole spacecraft electrically and magnetically clean.

How you will work

You will join a small flight programme team where engineers lead through their work, not their title. You will set the RF architecture, design the boards, run the tests and take the hardware through integration. You will guide other engineers on test setups and grounding.

What you will do

• Lead RF system architecture, link budget analysis and communications subsystem integration
• Design and route custom PCBs that interface with other spacecraft subsystems
• Run EMI/EMC analysis and testing across the whole spacecraft
• Lead magnetic cleanliness, including dipole modelling, stray field budgeting and hands on magnetic survey testing on flight hardware
• Make sure designs meet FCC and NTIA requirements
• Document design processes and test results
• Guide other engineers on test configurations and grounding

What you will bring

• A degree in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering or similar
• 5+ years of hands on aerospace hardware experience
• Strong experience with link budgets and spacecraft communications subsystems
• Altium, KiCad or similar
• Oscilloscopes, manual soldering and rework, and RF test equipment
• Proven experience testing and integrating RF hardware
• Clean room and ESD experience
• You must hold, or be willing and eligible to obtain, a US DoD Top Secret security clearance

Nice to have

• Spacecraft magnetic cleanliness programmes, magnetic modelling or stray field characterisation
• EMI/EMC test standards such as MIL STD 461
• NASA GEVS
• IPC class board assembly standards
• Electronics designed for space use

What's on offer

• Fully paid medical cover for employees, plus dental and vision
• 401k matching
• Flexible vacation, sick days and holiday pay
• Pregnancy, family and military service leave
• Relocation support