Sr. Scientist-Analytical Chemistry, Purification at Satomic

Chemistry for Sustainability; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Satomic in San Diego, CA is seeking a Sr. Scientist-Analytical Chemistry to own and scale a chromatography-based purification fleet focused on SFC with LC support.

You will develop high-throughput, mass-directed purification workflows and ensure data quality and sample integrity. The role is hands-on in a newly built lab, combining method development, automation-friendly purification, preventive maintenance, and collaboration with software teams to deliver robust purification pipelines for drug

Qualifications

• Ph.D. with 4+ years in industry or MS with 6+ years or BS with 10+ years in analytical chemistry.
• Extensive hands-on chromatography-based purification of organic small molecules.
• Strong experience with SFC and high-throughput preparative LC/SFC purification.

Responsibilities

• Operate and maintain SFC and LC purification fleet, develop methods, run purification, review data.
• Create generic, automation-friendly purification workflows for diverse samples.
• Perform maintenance, diagnostics, and vendor coordination for SFC/LC/LC-MS systems.
• Identify workflow gaps and propose efficiency improvements to meet throughput targets.
• Collaborate with synthetic chemistry to deliver purified material meeting purity/quantity targets.
• Manage solvents, waste, and consumables for the purification fleet.
• Work with software/automation teams to integrate workflows and data export.

Skills

High-throughput purification

Mass-directed purification

SFC purification

LC purification

Automation familiarity

Purification informatics

Education

Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry

M.S. in Chemistry

B.S. in Chemistry

Tools

Waters SFC systems

Agilent LC/MS

Analytical Studio / KNIME

Job description

Sr. Scientist-Analytical Chemistry, Purification at Satomic

Description

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced analytical chemist to own, develop, and run Satomic's chromatography-based purification fleet with SFC as the primary technique, LC in support, using mass spectrometry as primary for detection and fraction collection. This role is central to Satomic's mission: purification is a bottleneck and our throughput targets demand a fleet that runs as a coordinated, automation-friendly system built for throughput rather than as individual instruments.

The successful candidate will develop, optimize, and standardize high-throughput, mass-directed purification methods and workflows, from fraction collection logic through post-purification data and sample handling. The work centers on SFC and LC purification, with a strong emphasis on SFC and on mass-directed purification, to deliver high-quality compounds and data that accelerate drug discovery efforts. You will keep the fleet running through preventive maintenance and fast troubleshooting, and partner closely with our software and automation teams to scale the purification capabilities.

This is a hands-on, lab-based position for a candidate who thrives in high throughput environments and is motivated to develop purification methodologies that are robust, scalable, and innovative while prioritizing rigorous data quality standards and sample integrity.

What You Will Own

This is a newly built lab with new instrumentation, so you will help shape how the purification capability is set up and run rather than inheriting an existing workflow.

• Day-to-day operation of the SFC and reverse-phase LC purification fleet, including method development, run execution, fraction collection strategy, and data review
• Develop and maintain generic, automation-friendly purification methods that cover the majority of incoming sample types without per-sample tuning
• Perform preventive maintenance, diagnostics, and troubleshooting across SFC, LC, and LC/MS systems; partner with vendors for service, upgrades, and installations
• Identify gaps in purification and reformatting workflows to recommend innovations for efficiency and throughput targets.
• Partner with synthetic chemistry to understand sample characteristics upstream and deliver purified material that meets purity and quantity targets downstream
• Solvent, waste, and consumable management for a fleet of purification instruments.
• Collaborate with software and automation teams to integrate purification workflows, including sample submission, queueing, fraction analysis, and structured data export
• Develop materials and protocols for training and mentoring new lab staff on proper use and care of the purification instrumentation and development of chromatography methodologies for SFC and LC purification.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry, Chemistry, or related field with 4+ years of relevant industry experience; or M.S. with 6+ years of relevant industry experience; or B.S. with 10+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Extensive hands-on experience with chromatography-based purification of organic small molecules, with core expertise in SFC and strong experience in high throughput preparative LC and/or SFC. Mass-directed purification experience is strongly preferred.
• Strong experience operating, maintaining, and troubleshooting LC, LC/MS, and SFC/MS instruments at the hardware level (pumps, autosamplers, detectors, ESI sources, fraction collectors)
• Demonstrated ability to develop generic purification methods that work across diverse small-molecule sample sets at high throughput
• Hands-on familiarity with Waters analytical and preparative SFC instrumentation and software is a plus, as well as with Agilent LC/MS systems. SFC depth gained on other platforms is equally valued.
• Familiarity with purification informatics and automation tools (Analytical Studio, Virscidian, OpenLab, MassLynx, Pipeline Pilot, KNIME, or equivalent)
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment

Compensation

This role offers a base salary of $140,000 - $160,000, along with meaningful equity ownership and competitive benefits. We are an early-stage company and design offers to balance cash compensation and long-term ownership. The salary range above reflects base pay only, and we work with candidates to build a package that aligns with their preferences. Final offers are based on a candidate's experience and expected impact.

Location

San Diego, CA