Senior RF Systems Architect & Technical Lead

City of Shakopee, MN; Santa Rosa (CA); On-site; USD 181,000 - 249,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) plan

Profit sharing

Medical insurance

Dental and vision security

Parental leave

Tuition reimbursement

Job summary

Test and Measurement Systems (NI) invites a Chief RF Engineer to steer RF hardware architecture in our Santa Rosa, CA RF R&D team. Lead architectural decisions, mentor engineers, and drive RF subsystems from concept to release with focus on performance and reuse across platforms.

You will guide RF front ends, LO/PLL, filters, PAs/LNAs, and ensure V&V, EMC/safety, RoHS/REACH compliance, and scalable solutions across products.

Qualifications

• 12+ years with a Bachelors in EE/ECE; OR 10+ with advanced degree (Masters or Ph.D.).
• Proven experience designing, simulating, verifying, and releasing RF circuits/subsystems using industry-standard tools.
• Mastery with RF instrumentation (VNA, spectrum/signal analyzers, vector generators, oscilloscopes).
• Ability to troubleshoot, simulate, and resolve embedded or mixed-signal issues at the board/system level.
• Programming or scripting proficiency (Python required; MATLAB/LabVIEW beneficial).
• Excellent communication, critical thinking, and technical decision-making abilities; demonstrated ability to lead through influence and mentor engineers.
• Demonstrated research and prototyping to assess emerging technologies and de-risk architectures.
• Experience with end-to-end ownership from concept to ramp; DFM/DFT/NPI and supplier engagement experience.

Responsibilities

• Provide architectural oversight and technical direction on RF designs.
• Influence design decisions through data-driven analysis, simulation, and empirical results.
• Guide RF/microwave designs (e.g. front ends, LO/PLL, filters, mixers, PAs/LNAs, switches/couplers) to meet specifications and acceptance criteria.
• Perform feasibility assessment of emerging technologies through research, prototyping, early modeling, and rapid experimentation.
• Drive concepts through prototyping, development, V&V, compliance (EMC/safety, RoHS/REACH), NPI, and sustaining activities with minimal oversight.
• Lead and review advanced RF system modeling, troubleshooting, and simulation-to-measurement correlation.
• Assess system-level performance including sensing paths and inter-device interfaces (SPI, I2C).
• Mentor other engineers, guide design reviews, and promote consistent engineering rigor.

Skills

RF circuit design

RF/microwave hardware

LTspice

Ansys Designer

SI/PI simulation

VNA

Python

Mentoring

Education

Bachelor's degree in EE/ECE

MS or PhD in EE/ECE

Tools

LTspice

Ansys Designer

Oscilloscope

VNA

Job description

Test and Measurement Systems (NI) invites a Chief RF Engineer to steer RF hardware architecture in our Santa Rosa, CA RF R&D team. Lead architectural decisions, mentor engineers, and drive RF subsystems from concept to release with focus on performance and reuse across platforms.

You will guide RF front ends, LO/PLL, filters, PAs/LNAs, and ensure V&V, EMC/safety, RoHS/REACH compliance, and scalable solutions across products.