Senior Radio Frequency Design Engineer

D24 Search Limited; Hawthorne (CA); On-site; USD 175,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Head of RF Engineering role in Hawthorne, CA, seeking a hands-on RF systems engineer with 5–12 years’ experience to own the architecture of a next-generation directed energy system for drone defense.

You will build, not just lead, and collaborate with cross-functional teams to design, simulate, and deliver a scalable RF chain with GaN amplifiers, phased arrays, and antennas.

Join a fast-moving, on-site engineering culture that rewards first-principles thinking and practical ownership of hardware.

Qualifications

• Extensive RF design experience through DFM and production.
• Hands-on contributor in RF systems, antennas, MMIC or electromagnetics.
• Deep experience with high-power RF and metal analog RF.
• Experience designing clean-sheet RF architectures through DFM into production.
• 5–12 years of RF engineer experience.
• Experience with phased arrays.
• Ability to use RF lab equipment including a signal generator and VNA.
• Ability to think from first principles.

Responsibilities

• Finish and validate the V01 RF lineup within ~60 days.
• Own and evolve RF system architecture end-to-end (drivers, GaN amplifiers, phased array antennas).
• Hands-on design work including antenna design and HFSS simulations.
• Run lab work with VNAs, signal generators and anechoic chamber testing; solve high-power RF/EMI/EMC problems.
• Collaborate daily with electrical, mechanical and power electronics engineers to keep interfaces current.

Skills

DFM to production

RF system design

Antenna systems

MMIC design

Electromagnetics

High-power RF

Phased arrays

RF lab equipment

First principles

Tools

Signal generator

Vector Network Analyzer

Job description

My client is an early-stage defense technology startup in Hawthorne, CA (Los Angeles), currently operating in stealth. Its mission is to defend the West against suicide and surveillance drones. The company is building what it describes as the world's first scalable directed energy system, a next-generation high-power radio frequency (RF) technology that sends concentrated energy through free space to bring down drones, including whole swarms.

The problem: Drone attacks are already damaging critical infrastructure such as LNG facilities, data centers, and airports in the Middle East, Ukraine, and Russia, and they are likely to spread worldwide. My client is working quickly to stop this kind of large-scale destruction with a defense system built to scale.

Culture: The company is a fast-moving, hands-on engineering company. It values urgency, a bias toward action, and first-principles thinking. Engineers work on-site in a lab with power electronics and RF equipment, and they get real ownership of hardware that ships.

The role:

We are looking for a Head of RF Engineering with 5-12 years of experience to own the architecture of a next-generation, high-power directed energy system that defends against drone swarms and suicide drones. You're a hands-on, first-principles RF systems engineer who has designed an RF lineup from a clean sheet, taken it through DFM, and shipped it to production. You'll join a small, well-funded team (recently raised $10M from Valor, Kantos and others) whose people come from Epirus, Northrop, MACOM, SpaceX/Starlink and DHS. You'll spend your first 6-9 months building, not managing, and then grow the RF team as the company scales.

What will you be doing?

• Getting the V01 RF lineup finished and working within about 60 days: RF architecture design, component sourcing and simulation
• Owning and evolving the RF system architecture end to end (drivers, high-power GaN amplifiers, phased array antennas), with a focus on systems that are cost-effective and can be mass-manufactured
• Doing hands-on design work yourself, including antenna design and simulation in HFSS and component design across the RF lineup
• Running lab work with VNAs, signal generators and anechoic chamber testing, and solving new high-power RF and EMI/EMC problems
• Working daily with the electrical, mechanical and power electronics engineers so every interface stays current as the design changes

Requirements:

• Experience taking an RF lineup through DFM and shipping it into production
• Hands- on individual contributor experience in RF system design, antenna systems, MMIC design, or electromagnetics
• Deep experience with high- power RF and metal analog RF
• Experience designing clean- sheet RF system architectures through DFM into production
• U. S. citizenship and eligibility to obtain a U. S. security clearance (no visa sponsorship)
• 5 - 12 years of experience as an RF engineer
• Experience with phased arrays, either a full system or one component
• Ability to use RF lab equipment, including a signal generator and VNA
• Ability to think from first principles

Why join the company

• Build the world's first scalable directed energy system. This LA-based startup uses high-power RF to knock suicide drones out of the sky.
• They just raised a fresh $10M round with Valor (the backer behind Elon's companies) on the cap table. The team includes RF talent pulled from their biggest competitor plus vets from Northrop, MACOM, SpaceX and DHS.
• Head of RF Engineering role paying $175k–$300k. It's on-site 5 days a week in Hawthorne, CA, and you'll own the full RF chain hands-on.