Senior Electrical Engineer

Northwood Space; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company stock

Health care

Unlimited vacation

Retirement savings

Professional development

Job summary

Northwood Space is seeking a Lead Electrical Engineer to drive the design of high-speed PCBs for our digital backend systems. This role involves collaborating with multi-disciplinary teams to optimize performance and ensure the reliability of products deployed globally. Candidates should have a minimum of 6 years of experience in PCB design, with proficiency in high-speed design and soldering. Northwood offers a competitive compensation package, including stock options, health care, and unlimited vacation.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of professional experience in PCB design.
• Proficient in high-density/high-speed design including FPGAs.
• Experience designing high reliability systems is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Drive PCB design for high speed digital communication systems.
• Layout and bring up of FPGAs and microcontrollers.
• Test prototypes and assess performance in the lab and in the field.

Skills

PCB design

High-density/high-speed design

Low noise design

C, C++, or Python

Soldering and PCB rework

Job description

About Northwood

Northwood is on a mission to transform connectivity between earth and space and bring the benefits of space to the masses through innovations in space communications technologies. If you like building quickly and seeing your work deployed in locations around the globe with real impact, we want you at Northwood.

Job Level

The level of this position will be determined based on the qualifications and experience of the successful candidate. We are open to considering candidates of varying experience levels, from mid-career to principal.

Role

Northwood is looking for a Lead of Electrical Engineer to drive the development of the high speed PCBs for our digital backend. The digital backend ensures our antenna system can meet high rate processing needs no matter where it’s deployed. Our hardware team prioritizes excellent engineering, building end products that are known for their reliability, scalability, and cost. In this role you will guide high speed PCB designs from initial concept all the way through to production.

Responsibilities

• Drive PCB design for high speed digital communication systems. Implementing RF and mixed‑signal designs into complex multilayer PCBs
• Layout and bring up of FPGAs, microcontrollers, and their associated peripherals
• Working across teams with RF engineers, antenna engineers, and DSP/FPGA engineers to optimize system performance and overall design
• Perform schematic design and layout alongside board bring up and validation
• Work with suppliers to ensure components are optimized for performance and cost
• Test prototypes and assess performance in the lab and in the field
• Incorporate performance analysis into system improvements for further development

Qualifications

• 6+ years of professional experience in PCB design
• Proficient in high‑density/high‑speed design (including FPGAs, high speed data converters, SerDes, 10/100 GigE, networking, JESD204C)
• Proficiency in PCB design using fine pitch BGA with multilayer PCB boards
• Experience with low noise design and minimization of EMI/EMC
• Knowledge of PCB materials and developing board stackup per design requirement
• Work with vendors and manufacturers to resolve issues related to PCB fabrications and assembly
• Soldering and PCB rework skills
• Experience designing, testing, and troubleshooting complex board designs and systems in a hardware R&D lab environment
• Experience designing high reliability systems is a plus
• Experience in C, C++, or Python is a plus

Compensation and Benefits

Compensation is determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case‑by‑case basis and may vary based on job‑related skills, education, experience, and technical capabilities. In addition to base salary, Northwood offers long‑term incentives such as company stock, stock options, and cash awards, as well as discretionary bonus for performance. Northwood benefits include equity, health care, unlimited vacation, retirement savings and professional development.

Additional Information

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Northwood is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Northwood is governed on a 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.