Senior Instrument Architect: Systems & Real-Time (Hybrid)

bdx

Milpitas (CA)

On-site

USD 169,000 - 270,000

Full time

14 days+

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Job summary

Waters is seeking a Senior Staff Engineer in Milpitas to lead complex life science products through development stages. You will define system architecture, manage interfaces, and guide verification and validation, collaborating with Marketing, HW, SW, and Reagents to deliver high‑quality instruments.

You will mentor teammates, ensure robust system requirements, and drive end‑to‑end data flow from detectors to software.

Qualifications

RTOS, deterministic control loops, hardware‑software handshakes, state machine design, and communication protocols (e.g., RS232, USB, TCP/IP, CAN bus, SPI, I2C).
High-throughput data processing architectures, including DMA transfers, FIFO buffering and high‑speed bus interfaces (PCIe, USB 3.0, Gigabit Ethernet).
Hydrodynamic focusing, laminar flow, microfluidics, acoustic focusing, and high‑pressure sample delivery loops.
Multi‑laser excitation paths, beam shaping, dichroic filter design, and light collection geometry (forward/side scatter).
PMTs, APDs, SiPMs, and FPGA‑based DSP.
Fluorophore excitation/emission profiles, antibody staining dynamics, and biological assay requirements.
Bachelor’s degree in engineering; Master’s or PhD preferred.
Minimum of 12 years in systems engineering, product development, or product design.
Experience in design control in a regulated environment.
Familiarity with regulations and compliance testing.

Responsibilities

Define System Architecture: Author comprehensive system‑level specifications, ICDs, and functional block diagrams.
Manage Subsystem Interactions: Map and optimize interfaces to prevent performance bottlenecks.
Architect System Control & Real‑Time Coordination: Design state machines, control loops, and timing sequences for real‑time hardware interactions.
Design End‑to‑End Data Flow Architecture: Map data paths from detector signals through FPGA processing to software layers.
Lead Sub-Systems Budget Allocation: Define budgets for optical power, SNR, timing, and electrical power.
Conduct Performance Modeling: Build models to simulate throughput, carryover, fluorophore spillover, and sensitivity.
Drive Trade‑off Decisions: Balance resolution speed, laser power, footprint, and cost.
Own the end‑to‑end requirements lifecycle: needs, requirements, traceability, verification planning, change management.
Be primary stakeholder in Design and Technical Reviews for sound decisions.
Work effectively in cross‑functional teams and with external partners.