Senior RF Front-End Design Engineer - Satellite User Terminals

E-Space Inc.; Arlington (TX); Hybrid; USD 160,000 - 195,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid holidays

Paid time off

Health and wellness care options

Financial solutions for the future

Optional legal services (US only)

Job summary

E-Space Inc. in Arlington, TX, seeks an expert RF front-end engineer to own the design from requirements through production. You will develop transmit/receive chains, specify RF performance, and guide hardware from concept to fielded product.

This role requires hands-on experience with ADS/AWR, VNAs, and RF test equipment; you will mentor teammates, collaborate across engineering and operations, and help advance our satellite and IoT systems in a fast-paced space environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 7+ years hands-on RF/microwave hardware design experience.
• Experience designing RF front-end hardware from requirements through production release.
• Strong understanding of RF architectures, impedance matching, gain, noise figure, linearity, stability, and filters.
• Hands-on experience with RF circuit simulation tools such as Keysight ADS or Cadence AWR.
• Experience with schematic capture, RF PCB layout review, prototype bring-up, debugging, and characterization.
• Experience with PAs, LNAs, filters, switches, mixers, synthesizers, transceivers, or related RF components.
• Hands-on experience using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, power meters, and other RF laboratory equipment.
• Ability to correlate simulated and measured results and resolve RF performance problems.
• Strong technical communication and cross-functional collaboration.
• Strong knowledge of satellite communication systems and deriving detailed requirements from system direction.

Responsibilities

• Own RF front-end designs from requirements through production release.
• Develop transmit and receive chains including PAs, LNAs, filters, duplexers, diplexers, switches, couplers, attenuators, mixers, synthesizers, transceivers, and frequency-conversion devices.
• Translate link-budget requirements into RF specifications for output power, sensitivity, noise figure, gain, linearity, dynamic range, bandwidth, EVM, adjacent-channel performance, phase noise, spurious emissions, and efficiency.
• Perform cascaded RF analyses covering gain, noise figure, sensitivity, P1dB, IP3, dynamic range, compression, EVM, phase noise, spurious performance, and link margin.
• Design device-level RF circuits, impedance-matching networks, bias networks, stability networks, power detectors, and protection circuits.
• Select RF components based on electrical performance, power consumption, thermal behavior, size, availability, cost, manufacturability, and reliability.
• Simulate RF circuits using Keysight ADS, Cadence AWR, or equivalent.
• Define RF PCB stackups, controlled-impedance transmission lines, grounding, shielding, component placement, isolation, and critical RF routing.
• Develop architectures supporting TDD, FDD, or simultaneous transmit and receive, as required.
• Analyze transmitter leakage, receiver desensitization, harmonics, intermodulation, oscillator leakage, switching noise, and digital interference.
• Integrate the RF front end with the antenna, modem, baseband processor, ADC/DAC, firmware, power system, enclosure, and thermal solution.
• Plan and perform RF measurements using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, power meters, noise-figure analyzers, oscilloscopes, and communication signal analyzers.
• Measure and optimize gain, noise figure, sensitivity, output power, EVM, ACPR or ACLR, harmonics, spurious emissions, stability, and efficiency.
• Correlate simulations with measured results, identify root causes of discrepancies, and drive corrective actions.
• Support environmental testing for user-terminal conditions, including temperature cycling, vibration, shock, humidity, and outdoor operation.
• Develop production calibration, test limits, automated test methods, and manufacturing verification strategies.
• Document requirements, analyses, schematics, design decisions, test procedures, results, and technical risks.
• Mentor engineers and technicians and help establish repeatable RF design and validation practices.

Skills

RF front-end design

Schematic capture

PCB layout

RF power amplifiers

Receiver/transmitter architecture

RF test & debugging

RF simulation tools

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

Keysight ADS

Cadence AWR

Schematic capture tools

Job description

Ready to make connectivity from space universally accessible, secure and actionable? Then you’ve come to the right place!

E-Space is bridging Earth and space to enable hyper-scaled deployments of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions and services. We are building a highly-advanced low Earth orbit (LEO) space system that will fundamentally change the design, economics, manufacturing and service deliveryassociated with traditional satellite and terrestrial IoT systems.

We’re intentional, we’re unapologetically curious and we’re 100% committed to innovate space-based communications and deliver actionable intelligence that will expand global economies, protect space and our planet and enhance our overall quality of life.

What you will do:

• Own RF front-end designs from system requirements and architecture through schematic capture, PCB layout, prototype bring-up, verification, and production release.

• Develop transmit and receive chains using power amplifiers, low-noise amplifiers, filters, duplexers, diplexers, switches, couplers, attenuators, mixers, synthesizers, transceivers, and frequency-conversion devices.

• Translate link-budget requirements into RF specifications for output power, sensitivity, noise figure, gain, linearity, dynamic range, bandwidth, EVM, adjacent-channel performance, phase noise, spurious emissions, and efficiency.

• Perform cascaded RF analyses covering gain, noise figure, sensitivity, P1dB, IP3, dynamic range, compression, EVM, phase noise, spurious performance, and link margin.

• Design device-level RF circuits, impedance-matching networks, bias networks, stability networks, power detectors, and protection circuits.

• Select RF components based on electrical performance, power consumption, thermal behavior, size, availability, cost, manufacturability, and reliability.

• Simulate RF circuits using Keysight ADS, Cadence AWR, or equivalent circuit and electromagnetic simulation tools.

• Define and review RF PCB stackups, controlled-impedance transmission lines, grounding, shielding, component placement, isolation, and critical RF routing.

• Develop architectures supporting TDD, FDD, or simultaneous transmit and receive, as required.

• Analyze transmitter leakage, receiver desensitization, harmonics, intermodulation, oscillator leakage, switching noise, and digital interference.

• Integrate the RF front end with the antenna, modem, baseband processor, ADC/DAC, firmware, power system, enclosure, and thermal solution.

• Plan and perform RF measurements using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, power meters, noise-figure analyzers, oscilloscopes, and communication signal analyzers.

• Measure and optimize gain, noise figure, sensitivity, output power, EVM, ACPR or ACLR, harmonics, spurious emissions, stability, and efficiency.

• Correlate simulations with measured results, identify root causes of discrepancies, and drive corrective actions.

• Support environmental testing for user-terminal conditions, including temperature cycling, vibration, shock, humidity, and outdoor operation.

• Develop production calibration, test limits, automated test methods, and manufacturing verification strategies.

• Document requirements, analyses, schematics, design decisions, test procedures, results, and technical risks.

• Mentor engineers and technicians and help establish repeatable RF design and validation practices.

Required qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or a related field.

• Typically 7 or more years of hands-on RF or microwave hardware design experience.

• Demonstrated experience designing RF front-end hardware from requirements through production release.

• Strong understanding of transmit and receive architectures, impedance matching, gain, noise figure, linearity, stability, dynamic range, and RF filtering.

• Hands-on experience with RF circuit simulation tools such as Keysight ADS, Cadence AWR, or equivalent.

• Experience with schematic capture, RF PCB layout review, prototype bring-up, debugging, and characterization.

• Experience designing with PAs, LNAs, filters, switches, mixers, synthesizers, transceivers, or related RF components.

• Hands-on experience using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, power meters, and other RF laboratory equipment.

• Ability to correlate simulated and measured results and resolve RF performance problems systematically.

• Strong technical communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.

• Strong knowledge and understanding of satellite communication systems, with the ability to derive detailed technical requirements from high-level objectives and system direction.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience with satellite communication terminals, cellular devices, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GNSS, IoT radios, or other wireless products.

• Experience with modem-to-antenna RF architectures and complete wireless signal chains.

• Experience optimizing PA performance for output power, efficiency, EVM, linearity, and adjacent-channel emissions.

• Experience optimizing receiver sensitivity while managing filter loss, LNA gain, interference, and ADC dynamic range.

• Familiarity with TDD/FDD isolation, receiver desensitization, coexistence, self-interference, and transmitter-noise requirements.

• Experience with RF shielding, EMI/EMC, grounding, power-supply noise, and digital-interface interference.

• Experience developing production calibration and automated RF test methods.

• Familiarity with outdoor-terminal regulatory, environmental, reliability, and manufacturability requirements.

• Experience supporting medium- or high-volume production.

• Phased-array antenna/RFFE experience is beneficial.

Additional Requirements

This is a fast-paced, high-impact environment - flexibility to occasionally work extended hours or weekends during critical periods is expected.

$160,000 - $195,000 a year

This is a full time, exempt position, based out of our Arlington, TX facility. The target base pay for this position is $160,000 - $195,000 annually. The total compensation packaged will be determined by various factors such as your relevant job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

We are redefining how satellites are designed, manufactured and used—so we’re looking for candidates with passion, deep knowledge and direct experience on LEO satellite component development, design and in-orbit activities. If that’s your experience – then we’ll be immediately wow-ed.

E-Space is not currently able to provide employment sponsorship for candidates who do not hold work authorization for the location of this role.

Why E-Space is right for you:

As a member of our team, you will play a crucial role in driving our success. Our team members have a strong sense of dedication and responsibility; this includes a strong commitment to our mission to create an entirely new suite of global capabilities to improve lives, business efficiencies and build a smarter planet. This means that there will be times when extra hours, including nights and weekends, may be needed to meet critical deadlines and mission goals. In return, we offer a dynamic work environment with opportunities for professional growth and development and the chance to make a meaningful impact in a high-growth industry.

We want you to make the most of your journey at E-Space. That’s why we support and invest in the physical, emotional and financial well-being of our team members and their families. Some of what you can expect when working at E-Space:

An opportunity to really make a difference

Sustainability at our core

Fair and honest workplace

Innovative thinking is encouraged

Competitive salaries

Continuous learning and development

Health and wellness care options

Financial solutions for the future

Optional legal services (US only)

Paid holidays

Paid time off