Senior R&D Technician, Space PV Prototyping

Tandem PV, Inc.; Fremont (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Tandem PV, Inc. in Fremont, CA, is seeking a Senior R&D Technician, Space PV Prototyping, to collaborate with engineers to build prototype solar devices for spacecraft on ultrathin substrates.

You will run deposition, coating and patterning tools, laminate covers, and document results with high precision. You will maintain meticulous logs, handle delicate materials, and prepare sample batches for external test partners, while ensuring safety and cleanroom protocols are followed.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated manual dexterity and careful handling of delicate materials.
• Meticulous, legible, and consistent processing notes.
• Follows procedures exactly and speaks up when missing.
• Ability to work autonomously within a team in a lab environment.
• Willingness to learn new concepts, tools and measurements.
• Comfort with basic lab arithmetic, unit conversions, reading specs.
• Can work in a cleanroom wearing PPE and gowning; lift up to 25 lb.

Responsibilities

• Load and run sputter and evaporation processes with bake-outs and pump-down.
• Coat and thermally process device layers to fixed recipes and flag deviations.
• Set up and run laser patterning steps; inspect under microscope and measure isolation.
• Laminate thin cover materials; inspect for voids and edge-seal quality.
• Perform metrology: sheet-resistance mapping, transmittance, profilometry, imaging, IV.
• Keep run logs and travelers; prepare and ship samples to test partners.
• Build and wire coupon sets; perform routine tool care and drift warnings.

Skills

Steady hands

Documentation

Procedures adherence

Problem solving

Adaptability

Arithmetic

Cleanroom work

Tools

Vacuum systems

Thermal evaporation

Sputter deposition

Laser tools

Solution coating

Job description

At Tandem PV, we are a team of people who are passionate about building a more sustainable world by bringing cost effective solar panels onto the market. We’re scaling metal-halide perovskite solar technology to make best-in-class mechanically stacked tandem modules. We have built efficient, durable cells, monolithic multi-cell submodules, and packaged modules with our scalable, low-cost process. Our next focus is expanding our team to work in our new pilot manufacturing facility.

Job Summary:

As a Senior R&D Technician, Space PV Prototyping, you will work with our engineers and technicians to build prototype solar devices for spacecraft on ultrathin and flexible substrates: preparing substrates, running deposition, coating and patterning tools, laminating covers, and measuring results. Much of what you handle is a fraction of a millimeter thick and hard to replace, so careful execution, exact adherence to written procedures and meticulous records are central to the role. Your work produces the consistent, well-documented sample sets that our development and test campaigns depend on.

To be great at this role, you will have:

• Clean, inspect, photograph and log substrates, and keep accurate inventory of limited, high-value materials.
• Load and run sputter and evaporation processes, including bake-outs and controlled pump-down and vent sequences.
• Coat and thermally process device layers to fixed recipes, and flag anything that looks different from previous runs.
• Set up and run laser patterning steps, then inspect the result under a microscope and measure electrical isolation.
• Laminate cover materials, including very thin ones, and inspect for voids and edge-seal quality; handle ultrathin substrates and release them from carriers once formally qualified.
• Perform routine metrology: sheet-resistance mapping, transmittance, profilometry, optical microscopy, luminescence imaging and current-voltage measurement.
• Keep run logs and per-part travelers (tools, recipes, temperatures, vacuum cycles, operator, timestamps), and prepare and ship sample batches to external test partners.
• Build, label, mount and wire coupon sets for test campaigns and exposure chambers, and perform routine tool care, including early warning when a tool starts to drift.

Qualifications:

• Steady hands and patience for delicate manual work; this is the single most important qualification for the role.
• Meticulous documentation habits: detailed, legible and consistent notes of processing conditions.
• Follows written procedures exactly, and speaks up when a procedure does not match what is actually in front of you.
• Problem-solving orientation and the ability to work autonomously once trained, as part of a team in a scientific or technical environment.
• Adaptability across a wide range of laboratory tasks and willingness to learn new concepts, tools and measurements.
• Comfortable with basic laboratory arithmetic, unit conversion, and reading a specification or drawing.
• Ability to perform the essential functions of the position, with or without reasonable accommodation, including working in a cleanroom environment while wearing required PPE and gowning; working on your feet for extended periods as required by laboratory activities; occasionally lifting, carrying, or moving materials weighing up to approximately 25 pounds; and safely working in laboratory and manufacturing environments where solvents, chemicals, and Class 4 laser systems may be present. Employees will be required to follow applicable safety procedures and complete required safety training.

Preferred Experience:

• Laboratory, cleanroom, semiconductor, display or precision manufacturing background, including handling thin glass, silicon wafers or display panels.
• Operation of vacuum systems, thermal evaporation or sputter deposition, solution coating (blade or slot-die), or laser tools.
• Experience in an ISO 9001, AS9100 or similarly controlled environment, or with fine assembly, soldering, precision dispensing or hermetic sealing.

This position may require access to technology and/or technical data subject to U.S. export-control laws. Any eligibility or access requirements will be applied in accordance with applicable U.S. export-control laws, regulations, licenses or authorizations, government-contract requirements, and applicable anti-discrimination laws.

Tandem PV uses perovskite & silicon mechanically-stacked tandems to upgrade silicon solar panels, sharply decreasing installed systems costs, significantly increasing module manufacturing profit margins, and opening up vast new solar markets in the US and worldwide. TPV was co-founded by Stanford PhDs Colin Bailie and Chris Eberspacher; is advised by industry experts from Corning, First Solar, Vivint Solar, and Kateeva; has raised more than $50M in Series A funding. We were recently recognized as the Best Pre-Commercial Venture of 2025 by the Industry Growth Forum (IGF)

We are a team of people who are passionate about building a more sustainable world by delivering a new generation of solar panels to the market. We are constantly growing and are always looking for dedicated, hardworking, and empathetic teammates.

Tandem PV is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply.