Senior Materials Engineer — Solar Cell Manufacturing

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP; Bastrop (TX); On-site; USD 130,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX is seeking a Sr. Materials Engineer to own consumables for ingot through wafer and solar cell fabrication on Starlink manufacturing lines.

You will set the technical bar for sourcing, qualification, and hand-off, addressing material and supply-chain challenges to enable reliable, high-volume production. Ideal candidates have deep fundamentals across metals, polymers, crystals, and process consumables, with hands-on manufacturing experience and strong cross-functional collaboration with

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in materials science, chemical engineering, or a STEM field.
• 5+ years in materials engineering, supplier qualification, or manufacturing materials support.
• Experience with materials characterization techniques (SEM-EDS, XRD, FTIR, XPS).

Responsibilities

• Own and drive strategy for consumable materials across ingot, wafer, and/or solar cell manufacturing lines.
• Lead cross-functional efforts with supply chain, process engineering, quality, and production to source, qualify, and dual-source materials.
• Define and own material requirements, specifications, and acceptance criteria for manufacturability at rate.
• Architect and execute material qualification programs including characterization, trials, and readiness reviews.
• Lead root cause investigations and implement durable corrective actions with urgency.
• Mentor peers on materials problem solving and qualification best practices.
• Communicate status, risks, and strategic recommendations to leadership.

Skills

Materials engineering

Supplier qualification

Process materials

Manufacturing materials

Education

Bachelor's degree in materials science, chemical engineering, or a STEM field

Tools

SEM-EDS

XRD

FTIR

XPS

Optical microscopy

Mechanical testing

Job description

SpaceX is seeking a Sr. Materials Engineer to own consumables for ingot through wafer and solar cell fabrication on Starlink manufacturing lines.

You will set the technical bar for sourcing, qualification, and hand-off, addressing material and supply-chain challenges to enable reliable, high-volume production. Ideal candidates have deep fundamentals across metals, polymers, crystals, and process consumables, with hands-on manufacturing experience and strong cross-functional collaboration with