Senior Electrical Engineer

Rainmaker; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Rainmaker is seeking a senior hardware engineer to lead system design and rapid prototyping for complex electrical platforms. You will define interfaces, design PCBs in Altium, and drive bring-up, testing, and documentation for flight-ready hardware.

The role requires 6+ years in electronics, strong MCU experience (Raspberry Pi, Jetson, STM32, ESP32), and expertise in power integrity, signal integrity, EMI/EMC. Mentoring engineers and collaborating across teams are key aspects.

Qualifications

• Bachelors in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or significant demonstrated technical ability and professional experience (6+ years in related electronics).
• 4+ years of professional PCB design experience with Altium including digital, mixed-signal, and analog front-end designs.
• Proven track record leading hardware designs from concept through manufacturing (DFM/DFT) and working with contract manufacturers.
• Deep experience with embedded platforms and microcontrollers (Raspberry Pi, NVIDIA Jetson, STM32, ESP32, RP2040).
• Experience with high-speed digital design, power integrity, signal integrity, and EMI/EMC considerations.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers and lead technical reviews.
• Embedded programming experience (C++, C, Rust, or Python), including board bring-up and low-level driver development for sensors and interfaces.

Responsibilities

• System Design: Lead architecture and define system-level requirements and interfaces.
• Rapid Hardware Prototyping: Build functional prototypes and iterate with test feedback.
• PCB Design: Create schematics and layouts for power, sensors, and communications using Altium.
• Board Bringup and Testing: Assemble, debug, and validate PCBs; develop test procedures.
• Documentation: Write technical docs and prepare fabrication/assembly data.
• Collaborate with cross functional teams: Mechanical, software, research, and manufacturing.

Skills

PCB design

Altium

Embedded programming

Microcontrollers

Power integrity

Signal integrity

EMI/EMC

DFM/DFT

Board bring-up

C/C++/Python

Education

Bachelors in Electrical/Computer Engineering

Job description

What You'll Do

• System Design: Lead the architecture and design of complex electrical systems for hardware platforms, defining system-level requirements, interface specifications, and integration strategies.

• Rapid Hardware Prototyping: Design and build functional prototypes for hardware subsystems, iterating quickly based on test feedback and mission requirements.

• PCB Design: Create schematic and layouts for power distribution, sensor interfaces, payload controllers and communication modules using Altium.

• Board Bringup and Testing: Assemble, debug, and validate new PCBs; develop test procedures and fixtures to verify functionality and reliability under flight conditions.

• Documentation: Write technical documentation, prepare fabrication and assembly data for manufacturers.

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams: Mechanical engineers, software engineers, research and manufacturing

Required Qualifications

• Bachelors in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or significant demonstrated technical ability and professional experience (6+ years of industry work in a related electronics field)
• 4+ years of professional PCB design experience with Altium (or equivalent), including products developed with digital, mixed-signal, and analog front-end designs.
• Proven track record leading hardware designs from concept through manufacturing, including DFM/DFT and working directly with contract manufacturers.
• Deep experience with embedded platforms and microcontrollers (Raspberry Pi, NVIDIA Jetson, STM32, ESP32, RP2040).
• Experience with high-speed digital design, power integrity, signal integrity, and EMI/EMC considerations.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers and lead technical reviews
• Embedded programming experience (C++, C, Rust, or Python), including board bring-up, debugging, and low-level driver development for sensors, communication interfaces (SPI, I2C, UART, CAN), and real-time control loops.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience designing PCBs and electrical systems capable of sustaining 10kW loads.
• Experience bringing UAV electrical systems from concept through flight test and production
• Experience designing power electronics, including BLDC motor controllers, ESCs, and battery management systems (BMS)
• Familiarity with flight controllers such as Pixhawk, ArduPilot, or custom autopilot hardware
• Hands-on experience with lithium polymer (LiPo), lithium-ion, and solid-state battery integration and safety
• Knowledge of RF systems, including datalinks, telemetry radios, SATCOM, and antenna integration

Rainmaker is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Rainmaker is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Rainmaker participates in E-Verify. To learn more, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit E-Verify.gov.

120000 - 160000 USD a year