Space Laser Optical Engineer Test & Metrology

Cowboy Space Corp.; San Carlos (CA); On-site; USD 145,000 - 175,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) retirement plan

Paid time off

Unlimited PTO

Parental leave

Relocation assistance

Office lunch

Job summary

Cowboy Space Corp. in San Carlos, CA is seeking an Optical Engineer, Test & Metrology to design and run tests that verify laser and optical communications hardware.

You will spend most of your time in the lab building test setups, aligning optics, taking measurements, and turning data into actionable results for the design team. You will work with optical, photonics, and laser engineers through satellite integration and grow in test design and campaigns, with 3+ years in optics labs, strong

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in optics, physics, electrical engineering or related field.
• 3+ years hands-on experience in optics or photonics lab.
• Experience with precision optical alignment on a bench.
• Experience operating standard optical test equipment (power meters, OSAs, oscilloscopes, beam profilers).
• Working knowledge of optics fundamentals: Gaussian beams, fiber coupling, polarization, interferometry.
• Experience analyzing measurement data in Python or similar language.
• Familiarity with Class 3B and Class 4 laser safety practices.

Responsibilities

• Build, align, and operate optical test setups for free-space, fiber-optic, and interferometric components and subassemblies.
• Measure optical performance including power, spectrum, beam quality, wavefront, polarization, and alignment; distill results.
• Develop test plans with lead engineers and execute, recording results accurately.
• Support testing as hardware moves through integration: components to full satellite deployment.
• Operate test equipment (OSAs, power meters, oscilloscopes, BER testers, beam profilers, wavefront sensors, interferometers).
• Write scripts to automate measurements and data analysis.
• Investigate anomalies and feed findings back into design.
• Support field campaigns, including ground station setup and PAT validation.
• Follow laser safety procedures and maintain calibration records.

Skills

Optics lab experience

Precision optical alignment

Data analysis (Python)

Laser safety practices

Test measurement automation

Education

Bachelor's degree in Optics/Physics/EE

Tools

Power meters

OSAs

Oscilloscopes

Beam profilers

Job description

Cowboy Space Corp. in San Carlos, CA is seeking an Optical Engineer, Test & Metrology to design and run tests that verify laser and optical communications hardware.

You will spend most of your time in the lab building test setups, aligning optics, taking measurements, and turning data into actionable results for the design team. You will work with optical, photonics, and laser engineers through satellite integration and grow in test design and campaigns, with 3+ years in optics labs, strong