Senior Digital Payload Engineer – RF & Space Systems

Rocket Lab USA; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical plan

Dental & Vision

401(k) matching

Paid vacation & sick leave

Company equity

EV charging onsite

Onsite gym

Stock purchase program

Job summary

Rocket Lab USA's Space Systems team in Long Beach, CA is seeking a Senior Digital Payload Engineer I to lead the development of digital payload products, including modems and processors, from concept through inflight operations.

The role blends RF engineering, system design, and board-level work in a fast-paced environment, contributing to spacecraft hardware, production automation, and key program milestones with customer impact.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, computer science; or other engineering discipline.
• 5+ years in space electronics with high-speed interfaces (SPI, PCIe, Ethernet), SoCs, microcontrollers, and DSP.
• Knowledge of DSP algorithms and communication theory.
• U.S. citizenship required due to program requirements.

Responsibilities

• Define and maintain requirements specifications for digital payload products.
• Architect the digital product design and ensure alignment with program needs.
• Support development processes and key design decisions for product capabilities.
• Design and prototype the digital product including PCB layout and fabrication.
• Develop test plans and procedures for verification and validation.
• Support GSE and production automation development.
• Create product documentation including ICDs and user manuals.
• Collaborate with Test and Manufacturing Engineers to drive New Product Introduction.
• Review proposals and requirements to assess compliance with existing capabilities.
• Scope and drive development activities for new requirements.
• Support engineering reviews (PDRs, CDRs, TRRs) and customer troubleshooting.
• Maintain awareness of schedules to meet customer and program needs.

Skills

High-speed interfaces

System on Chips (SoCs)

Microcontrollers

Digital signal processing

DSP algorithms

U.S. citizenship

Education

Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or related field

Tools

PCB design software

Job description

Rocket Lab USA's Space Systems team in Long Beach, CA is seeking a Senior Digital Payload Engineer I to lead the development of digital payload products, including modems and processors, from concept through inflight operations.

The role blends RF engineering, system design, and board-level work in a fast-paced environment, contributing to spacecraft hardware, production automation, and key program milestones with customer impact.