Senior Principal, Signal Processing Research Scientist

RTX; Austin (TX); Remote; USD 132,000 - 252,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation Assistance available

Job summary

RTX is seeking a highly qualified RF Signal Processing Research Scientist to join the team. The role focuses on developing and applying advanced signal processing, RF modeling, and machine learning techniques for DoD sensing and communications. A TS clearance and willingness to travel are required.

Remote work is supported with occasional travel to support government customers. The team emphasizes cutting-edge research, collaboration with government customers, and opportunities for leadership of

Qualifications

• MS/PhD plus 8–10 years of relevant experience.
• Experience with signal processing including estimation, detection, etc.
• Experience with RF modeling and sensing.
• An active government Top Secret security clearance.
• Position will require some overnight travel.
• Experience applying advanced methods, theories, and R&D techniques to solve difficult problems.
• Skillset to tackle research challenges proactively with minimal supervision and periodic check-ins with team leads.
• Experience leading small teams of technical contributors.

Responsibilities

• Statistical signal processing including Bayesian estimators and performance bounds.
• Cyclostationary signal processing: CAF, SCF, SOF estimation.
• Adaptive signal processing: LMS/RLS, Kalman filtering, and multi-hypothesis tracking.
• RF propagation and signature modeling: link budgets, bistatic RCS estimation.
• Sensing: beamforming, direction finding, SAR, range-Doppler.
• Physical-layer communications: modulation, channel estimation, MIMO, decoding.

Skills

Signal processing

RF sensing

Team leadership

Documentation

Education

MS in Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, or Physics

PhD

Job description

Date Posted: 2026-11-03

Country: United States of America

Location: US-TX-REMOTE

Position Role Type: Remote

U.S. Citizen, U.S. Person, or Immigration Status Requirements: Active and transferable U.S. government issued security clearance is required prior to start date. U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are eligible for a security clearance

Security Clearance Type: DoD Clearance: TS/SCI

Security Clearance Status: Active and existing security clearance required on day 1

At RTX, the world's largest aerospace and defense company, 185,000 great minds are united by purpose and inspired to make a difference solving the world’s most complex problems. With our three market leading businesses, world-class operations and investments in research and development, we offer capabilities and opportunity no one else can. Together, we push the boundaries of known science and find new ways to connect and protect our world. Join us and help shape the future of aerospace and defense.

Role Overview:

BBN Technologies solves challenging problems of high importance to our customers in the Department of Defense, the Intelligence Community and Industry by rapidly prototyping systems for sensing complex physical phenomena, correlating them to events of interest, and producing high-value, actionable information from the sensed data. Our team specializes in developing next-generation sensor system technologies by combining a fundamental understanding of the underlying EM physics including complex electromagnetic interactions and signatures, and propagation phenomenology, with a deep expertise in analysis, statistical signal processing, optimization, and machine learning. We are currently searching for a highly qualified RF Signal Processing Research Scientist to join our team. Desirable candidates will have experience deriving and implementing research-grade algorithms and applying these to data collected from real sensors. Qualified candidates will have academic or professional experience in several of the areas listed below.

What You Will Do:

Statistical signal processing:

• Estimation techniques including Bayesian and non-Bayesian estimators, performance measures such as bias and mean-square error and bounds on estimator performance such as the Cramer-Rao lower bound.
• Detection techniques including the Neyman-Pearson detection, probabilities of detection and false alarm, receiver operating curves, etc.

Cyclostationary signal processing:

• CAF, SCF, SOF estimation.
• Computation of Cyclic Cumulants.
• Cyclic Feature Detection.

Adaptive signal processing:

• Temporal and space-time adaptive processing.
• Interference covariance estimation techniques including both structured and reduced-rank techniques.
• Wiener filtering and on-line adaptive techniques such as LMS and RLS.
• Kalman filtering, particle filtering, and multi-hypothesis tracking.
• Machine learning and optimization for optimal control.

RF propagation and signature modeling:

• Link budgets, terrestrial and free-space propagation models, multipath, non-stationary propagation environments (Doppler spread), clock stability and phase noise, and target kinematics.
• Antenna pattern estimation.
• Estimation of bistatic RCS.

Sensing:

• Sparse array processing, beamforming, direction finding, filtering and tracking.
• Range-Doppler radar and synthetic aperture radar (SAR).
• Signal classification and recognition.

Physical-layer communications:

• Modulation techniques and tradeoffs, channel estimation and tracking, MIMO communications, equalization, forward error correction and decoding.
• LPX waveform design.
• Multi-user detection.

Qualifications You Must Have:

• M.S. in Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, or Physics plus 10 years of relevant experience, or Ph.D. plus 8 years experience.
• Experience with signal processing, including estimation, detection, etc.
• Experience with RF modeling and sensing.
• An active government Top Secret security clearance.
• Position will require some overnight travel.
• Experience applying advanced methods, theories, and R&D techniques to solve difficult problems.
• Skillset to tackle research challenges proactively with minimal supervision and periodic check-ins with team leads.
• Experience leading small teams of technical contributors.
• Experience documenting plans and scientific findings with opportunities to present to government customers.

What We Offer:

Benefits (focus on unique benefits vs. standard). You may use your current requisition benefits content provided they have been reviewed by your HR Bus. Partner and Recruiter. Or you may use - Whether you’re just starting out on your career journey or are an experienced professional, we offer a robust total rewards package with compensation; healthcare, wellness, retirement, and work/life benefits; career development and recognition programs. Some of the benefits we offer include parental (including paternal) leave, flexible work schedules, achievement awards, educational assistance and child/adult backup care.

• Relocation Assistance available

To help you achieve your goals, BBN will provide

• A strong leadership team well-versed in government R&D.
• A collaborative and collegial environment to push state-of-the- art research.
• A diverse and technically competent pool of research scientists who are willing to mentor, listen, and help you refine your research vision and goals.
• Business development, programmatic, contracting, finance, and HR support.
• Access, through RTX, to opportunities that help transition your research and ultimately see it fielded.

As part of our commitment to maintaining a secure hiring process, candidates may be asked to attend select steps of the interview process in-person at one of our office locations, regardless of whether the role is designated as on-site, hybrid or remote.

The salary range for this role is 132,400 USD - 251,600 USD. The salary range provided is a good faith estimate representative of all experience levels. RTX considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the role, function and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, location, education/training, and key skills.

Hired applicants may be eligible for benefits, including but not limited to, medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability, 401(k) match, flexible spending accounts, flexible work schedules, employee assistance program, Employee Scholar Program, parental leave, paid time off, and holidays. Specific benefits are dependent upon the specific business unit as well as whether or not the position is covered by a collective-bargaining agreement.

Hired applicants may be eligible for annual short-term and/or long-term incentive compensation programs depending on the level of the position and whether or not it is covered by a collective-bargaining agreement. Payments under these annual programs are not guaranteed and are dependent upon a variety of factors including, but not limited to individual performance, business unit performance, and/or the company’s performance.

This role is a U.S.-based role. If the successful candidate resides in a U.S. territory, the appropriate pay structure and benefits will apply.

RTX anticipates the application window closing approximately 40 days from the date the notice was posted. However, factors such as candidate flow and business necessity may require RTX to shorten or extend the application window.

RTX is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any other applicable state or federal protected class. RTX provides affirmative action in employment for qualified Individuals with a Disability and Protected Veterans in compliance with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act.

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