Senior HPC Cluster Engineer

IonQ; Bothell, Boulder, College Park (WA, CO, MD); On-site; USD 145,920 - 209,241; Full time

Job summary

IonQ, a leader in quantum computing, is seeking an HPC Cluster Engineer to design, build, and operate the internal HPC platform used by researchers and developers.

You will develop automation for Linux systems, manage on-premises and cloud clusters, and collaborate with Infrastructure and research teams to accelerate scientific workloads. The role offers hybrid work, travel up to 15%, and opportunities to work with GPUs.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or equivalent practical experience.
• 5+ years Linux systems experience on HPC clusters; including cluster management, performance tuning, and resource management.
• Familiarity with Slurm, PBS, or Grid Engine.
• Comfort with Git or other version control systems.
• Proficiency with Python, Go, and Bash.
• Experience with Ansible and other configuration-management tools.
• Experience delivering projects in a fast-moving environment.
• Experience deploying HPC clusters on cloud platforms (GCP/AWS).
• Exposure to quantum computing is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy, and operate HPC systems for running quantum simulations and applications.
• Develop automation and tooling for configuring Linux systems both on-premises and in the cloud.
• Support IonQ's internal researchers and software developers as they run simulations and workloads.
• Build technical relationships with stakeholders across teams running a wide variety of workloads.
• Self-manage your projects, priorities, and deadlines; identify, track, and mitigate roadblocks and technical risks.
• Grow into a go-to resource for configuring, automating, and running HPC workloads within IonQ's technical community.

Skills

Linux systems

HPC clusters

Slurm

PBS

Grid Engine

Git

Python

Go

Bash

Ansible

Docker

Podman

Singularity

Enroot

GCP

AWS

Performance tuning

Education

Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or equivalent practical experience

Tools

NVIDIA GPUs

Job description

About IonQ

IonQ, Inc . [NYSE: IONQ] is the world’s leading quantum platform and merchant supplier - delivering integrated quantum solutions across computing, networking, sensing, and security. IonQ’s newest generation of quantum computers, the IonQ Tempo, is the latest in a line of cutting-edge systems that have been helping customers and partners including Amazon Web Services, and AstraZeneca achieve 20x performance results and accelerate innovation in drug discovery, materials science, financial modeling, logistics, cybersecurity, and defense. In 2025, the company achieved 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity, setting a world record in quantum computing performance . Headquartered in College Park, Maryland, IonQ has operations in California, Colorado, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Washington, Italy, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Our quantum computing services are available through all major cloud providers, while we also meet the needs of networking and sensing customers across land, sea, air, and space. IonQ is making quantum platforms more accessible and impactful than ever before.

Location

This role is based out of our College Park, MD, Boulder, CO, or Bothell, WA offices. We offer a hybrid work model, allowing for remote work a few days per week. Travel: Up to 15%, domestic and international.

Job ID: 1750

The Role

We're looking for an HPC Cluster Engineer to join our Infrastructure Team. Our mission is to build and operate the internal high-performance computing platform that IonQ's researchers and application developers rely on to advance quantum computing. In this role, you'll help design, build, and maintain an HPC platform that spans on-premises and cloud clusters. Day to day, that means developing automation tooling, configuring infrastructure at scale, and helping scientific users get the most out of their workloads. You'll also work closely with the rest of the Infrastructure Team to integrate the HPC platform with the other systems behind IonQ's quantum computers. This role will be a great fit if you enjoy working alongside researchers and want your work to directly accelerate scientific computing.

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy, and operate high-performance computing systems for running quantum simulations and applications.
• Develop automation and tooling for configuring Linux systems both on-premises and in the cloud.
• Support IonQ's internal researchers and software developers as they run simulations and other workloads.
• Build technical relationships with stakeholders across teams running a wide variety of workloads.
• Self-manage your projects, priorities, and deadlines; identify, track, and mitigate roadblocks and technical risks.
• Grow into a go-to resource for configuring, automating, and running HPC workloads within IonQ's technical community.

You'd be a good fit with

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or equivalent practical experience - non-traditional backgrounds are welcome and encouraged!
• 5+ years working with Linux systems on HPC clusters, including areas like cluster management, performance tuning, and resource management.
• Familiarity with HPC workload schedulers such as Slurm, PBS, or Grid Engine.
• Comfort with Git or other version control systems for managing source code and system configurations.
• Proficiency with scripting and programming languages such as Python, Go, and Bash.
• Experience with Ansible or another configuration-management and system-automation tool.
• Experience delivering projects in a fast-moving, sometimes ambiguous environment.

You'd be a great fit with

• Experience running scientific applications on a Slurm HPC cluster.
• Experience deploying and operating HPC clusters using NVIDIA GPUs.
• Experience with high-performance networking fabrics such as InfiniBand or RoCE.
• Experience with Linux container tools such as Docker, Podman, Singularity, or Enroot.
• Experience running web services and other long-running containerized workloads with Kubernetes.
• Experience deploying HPC clusters on GCP or AWS.
• A research-computing background supporting an academic, national-lab, or industry research community.
• Exposure to quantum physics, quantum computing, and/or quantum information science.

Compensation

The total compensation package includes base, bonus, equity, and a range of benefit options found on our career site. If this role has a commission structure, the compensation range below just reflects the base compensation range. Wage Transparency: $145,920 - $209,241 USD Compensation will vary based on individual factors such as education, qualifications, and experience of the final candidate(s), specific office location, and calibration against relevant market data and internal team equity. Posted base salary figures are subject to change as new market data becomes available.

Our benefits include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans, matching 401(k), unlimited PTO and paid holidays, parental/adoption leave, legal insurance, and a home technology stipend. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided when a candidate receives an offer of employment.

Company Culture & Commitment

At IonQ, we believe in fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all while striving to identify and eliminate barriers. We empower employees to thrive by fostering a culture of autonomy, productivity, and respect. We are dedicated to creating an environment where individuals can feel welcomed, respected, supported, and valued.

We are committed to equity and justice. We welcome different voices and viewpoints and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, ancestry, physical and/or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by law. We are proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.

Export Control and U.S. Compliance

The position you are applying for will require access to technology that is subject to U.S. export control and government contract restrictions. Employment with IonQ is contingent on either verifying "U.S. Person" (e.g., U.S. citizen, U.S. national, U.S. permanent resident, or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum) status for export controls and government contracts work, obtaining any necessary license, and/or confirming the availability of a license exception under U.S. export controls. Please note that in the absence of confirming you are a U.S. Person for export control and government contracts work purposes, IonQ may choose not to apply for a license or decline to use a license exception (if available) for you to access export-controlled technology that may require authorization, and similarly, you may not qualify for government contracts work that requires U.S. Persons, and IonQ may decline to proceed with your application on those bases alone. Accordingly, we will have some additional questions regarding your immigration status that will be used for export control and compliance purposes, and the answers will be reviewed by compliance personnel to ensure compliance with federal law.

US Non-Technical Jobs

Due to applicable export control laws and regulations, candidates must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum. Accordingly, we will have some additional questions regarding your immigration status that will be used for export control and compliance purposes, and the answers will be reviewed by compliance personnel to ensure compliance with federal law.