Senior Cathode Propulsion Engineer - Lead EP Development

Apex Space, Inc.; Northern, Los Angeles (KY, CA); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity in Apex

Health insurance

PTO 15–20 days

401(k) with matching

Parental leave

Daily lunch & snacks

Vibrant office culture

Impactful work

Job summary

Apex Space, Inc. is seeking a Staff Electric Propulsion Engineer with deep cathode expertise to own the design, development, qualification, and production of cathode technology for our electric propulsion systems.

This senior IC role will set the technical roadmap, run life-qualification campaigns, and mentor propulsion engineers as we scale EP production. You will lead end-to-end cathode design, develop physics-based models, validate with test data, and partner with systems and power

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in aerospace/mechanical/electrical/plasma/propulsion or physics.
• 10+ years in electric propulsion with cathode focus, or PhD with 5+ years experience.
• Hands-on knowledge of hollow and heaterless cathode physics and coupling to thrusters.
• Experience planning cathode/EP test campaigns in vacuum facilities.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end design of hollow and heaterless cathodes for Apex EP systems.
• Develop models to predict cathode performance and life, validated by tests.
• Define and execute cathode test and life-qualification campaigns in vacuum facilities.
• Drive cathode-thruster integration and interfaces with other subsystems.
• Lead failure analysis and continuous design improvements for scalable production.

Skills

Cathode design

EP test campaigns

Vacuum diagnostics

Mentorship & leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering

Master's/PhD in related field

Tools

Vacuum chambers

Plasma diagnostics

Thermal modeling

Materials selection

Job description

Apex Space, Inc. is seeking a Staff Electric Propulsion Engineer with deep cathode expertise to own the design, development, qualification, and production of cathode technology for our electric propulsion systems.

This senior IC role will set the technical roadmap, run life-qualification campaigns, and mentor propulsion engineers as we scale EP production. You will lead end-to-end cathode design, develop physics-based models, validate with test data, and partner with systems and power