Senior Photonics Scientist - 849

Quantinuum; Broomfield (CO); On-site; USD 164,000 - 205,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Flexible schedule

Health benefits

401(k) matching

Equity

Paid holidays

Parental leave

Job summary

Quantinuum is seeking a Senior Photonics Scientist in Broomfield, CO, to advance optical metrology and integrated photonics for trapped-ion quantum computing. You will collaborate across photonics designers, engineers, and partners to drive milestones, design studies, and architectural decisions.

The role requires a minimum of a Bachelor's degree and 8+ years in experimental optics or photonics. Candidates with experience in photonics testing and quantum computing will be favored.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in physics, engineering, or optics.
• 8+ years of hands-on experience in optics or photonics.
• Experience with experimental freespace optics or integrated photonics.
• U.S. person status required due to contract security rules.
• Knowledge of quantum computing or trapped-ion systems is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Guide and coordinate milestones and cross-group collaboration for integrated photonics.
• Develop optical metrology testbeds to evaluate photonic materials and devices.
• Lead design studies and analyses for system architectures.
• Manage schedules, budgets, and resources for R&D projects and handoffs to production.
• Analyze metrology data to inform Apollo and Lumos architecture and fabrication.

Skills

Integrated photonics

Experimental optics

Optical metrology

Photonic IC testing

MATLAB

Python

Scientific coding

Technical communication

Project coordination

Quantum computing familiarity

Education

Bachelor's degree in physics/engineering/optics

Tools

Lumerical

COMSOL

RCWA

RSoft

FDTD

FEM

Job description

We are seeking a **Senior Photonics Scientist** in our **Broomfield, CO** Location.

Our team is developing optics and integrated photonics technologies that will enable scaling of our trapped-ion quantum computers from our current 98-qubit Helios system to our future 1,000,000-qubit Lumos system ([Quantinuum system roadmap link](https://www.quantinuum.com/blog/technical-perspective-by-the-end-of-the-decade-we-will-deliver-universal-fault-tolerant-quantum-computing){rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"}). The data, designs, and expertise from our group inform our next-generation systems, including Apollo and Lumos, from the overall architecture to the tiniest of details. We are looking for more engineers and scientists to join our cross-disciplinary team.

Key Responsibilities

• Collaborate to guide, coordinate, and support technical milestones, cross-group collaboration, and strategic planning to innovate on integrated photonics for trapped-ion quantum computing
• Develop and demonstrate new optical metrology testbeds to evaluate a wide range of passive and active integrated photonic materials, devices, systems, and architectures
• Contribute to and/or lead design and trade studies and analyses
• Collaborate to the development and management of detailed schedules, budgets, resource allocations, and work plans for complex R&D projects and handoff to production teams.
• Take optical metrology data to inform decisions on Apollo and Lumos system architecture, photonics design, fabrication techniques, and the performance of next-generation quantum computers.
• Collaborate and work with a cross-disciplinary team, including photonics designers, photonics scientists & engineers, optical & mechanical engineers, atomic physicists, internal and external fabrication partners
• Communicate technical results, strategy,?scope?changes, risks, and progress effectively within our team and to our colleagues on other technical teams, project management, leadership, and externally.

You MUST HAVE

• Bachelor's degree minimum
• Minimum 8 years years' experience (degree inclusive) with experimental freespace optics and/or integrated photonics
• Due to Contractual requirements, must be a U.S. Person defined as, U.S. citizen permanent resident or green card holder, workers granted asylum or refugee status
• Due to national security requirements imposed by the U.S. Government, candidates for this position must not be a People's Republic of China national or Russian national unless the candidate is also a U.S. citizen.

WE VALUE

• Bachelor's degree in physics, engineering, or optics
• Experience directing a technical project
• Experience leading a technical team
• Experience guiding a product from concept to delivery
• Experience collaborating across teams to drive a project to completion
• Experience working with project management to deliver technical results on time
• 4+ years experience (degree inclusive) with photonic integrated circuit testing
• 4+ years (degree inclusive) experience with optical metrology
• Experience with on-chip photonics, fiber-to-chip coupling, modulation techniques
• Exposure to nanophotonic design using photonic simulation tools such as: FDTD, FEM, or optical mode solver (Lumerical/COMSOL/RCWA/RSoft or similar tools).
• Exposure to micro- and nano-fabrication techniques (e.g., electron beam and/or photolithography, wet and dry etching, scanning electron microscopy, wafer and sample handling, and general cleanroom practices).
• 5+ years experience with scientific coding and data analysis and visualization; hardware control and automation; familiarity with commonly used software packages (e.g., MATLAB, Python, Mathematica, Origin, Igor, etc.).
• Knowledge of trapped-ion quantum computers or other quantum computing architectures.
• Strong written & oral communication skills
• Stro g organizational and collaboration skills
• Ability to communicate clearly and effectively and to facilitate the exchange of key details and concepts between team members of diverse technical experience, including with remote colleagues

Compensation & Benefits

Incentive Eligible -- Range posted is inclusive of bonus target.

The pay range for this role is $164,000 -- $205,000 annually. Actual compensation within this range may vary based on the candidate's skills, educational background, professional experience, and unique qualifications for the role.

Quantinuum is the world leader in quantum computing. The company's quantum systems deliver the highest performance across all industry benchmarks. Quantinuum's over 650 employees, including 400+ scientists and engineers, across the US, UK, Germany, and Japan, are driving the quantum computing revolution.

By uniting best-in-class software with high-fidelity hardware, our integrated full-stack approach is accelerating the path to practical quantum computing and scaling its impact across multiple industries.

By joining Quantinuum, you'll be at the forefront of this transformative revolution, shaping the future of quantum computing, pushing the limits of technology, and making the impossible possible.

Benefits

• A competitive salary and innovative, game-changing work
• Flexible work schedule
• Employer subsidized health, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) match for student loan repayment benefit
• Equity, 401k retirement savings plan + 12 Paid holidays and generous vacation + sick time
• Paid parental leave
• Employee discounts

Quantinuum is an equal opportunity employer. You will be considered without regard to age, race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, marital status, affectional or sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, nationality, sex, or veteran status. [Know Your Rights: Workplace discrimination is illegal](https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2023-06/22-088_EEOC_KnowYourRights6.12ScreenRdr.pdf){rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"}

$164,000 - $205,000 a year

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