Staff Engineer, Safety Systems

xLight Inc.; Palo Alto (CA); Hybrid; USD 160,000 - 195,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid Work Model

Health Insurance (Company-funded)

401k contribution

Wellness programs

Lunch provided at Palo Alto office

Job summary

xLight Inc. in Palo Alto seeks a Lead Safety Systems Engineer to own the design, deployment, and testing of PPS, ODH, and RMS safety systems for a high-hazard accelerator facility.

You will lead CoDR/PDR/FDR reviews, ensure IEC 61508 SIL compliance, and drive safety documentation through FAT/SAT and commissioning, partnering with radiation physics and mechanical groups. Hybrid work and a strong benefits package are provided.

Qualifications

• 10+ years designing and commissioning safety-critical or functional-safety systems in a high-hazard environment.
• Hands-on fail-safe PLC design with Siemens S7-1500F and TIA Portal Safety Advanced.
• Experience running formal design reviews and producing verification/validation documentation.
• Familiarity with IEC 61508 lifecycle: SIL determination, allocation, and verification.

Responsibilities

• Design architecture and detailed design for PPS, ODH, and RMS, including interlock logic and fault-tolerance schemes.
• Deployment: procurement, panel build, installation coordination across controls, electrical, mechanical, and facilities teams.
• Test strategy and execution: FAT, SAT, interlock testing, and acceptance per safety requirements.
• Across lifecycle: CoDR/PDR/FDR design reviews and requirements traceability.
• Author operating, maintenance, and test procedures; train operators and technicians.

Skills

Electrical engineering

Controls systems

Safety-critical systems

PLC design

IEC 61508

Education

BS or MS in electrical engineering

Tools

Siemens SIMATIC S7-1500F

TIA Portal Safety

Allen-Bradley GuardLogix

Job description

Location: Palo Alto, CA (adjust as needed)

About xLight

xLightis building the world's most powerful laser to revolutionize semiconductor lithography, metrology, and for other critical applications. Our approach harnesses the power of free-electron lasers, building on accelerator technology in use globally at scientific user facilities. Extending this technology, we are developing industrial-grade light sources, engineered for continuous operation, to meet the sophisticated demands of next-generation patterning, metrology, and inspection applications. Join us in this new revolution.

We hire exceptional talent — and exceptional means more than a strong résumé. How we achieve results is just as important as the results themselves, which is why attitude and character matter as much as technical skill. We believe great talent is widely distributed, not confined to a particular school or background. We seek individuals who demonstrate ownership, a spirit of collaboration, technical curiosity, and a genuine willingness to learn and grow — guided by our core values of Respect, Integrity, Creativity, and Engineering Excellence. We don't just hire for what someone can do today. We hire for who they are and who they are becoming.

What We Need — and Why It Matters

Build the safety systems that protect one of the world's most advanced accelerator and light-source technologies.

We are hiring a Lead Safety Systems Engineer to own the design, deployment, and testing of the facility's personnel- and life-safety systems: the Personnel Protection System (PPS), the Oxygen Deficiency Hazard (ODH) monitoring system, and the Radiation Monitoring System (RMS).

This is an implementation and integration leadership role. The safety requirements — radiation dose limits and monitor siting, ODH classifications and ventilation design, access-control policy — are defined by our radiation physics and mechanical/ventilation groups. You take those requirements as inputs and are accountable for turning them into credible, fail-safe, and verifiable systems, and for carrying each system all the way through commissioning and acceptance.

What You Will Do

Design

• System architecture and detailed design for PPS, ODH monitoring, and RMS, including interlock logic, cause-and-effect matrices, access-control zoning, and search-and-secure sequences.
• Translation of safety requirements into fail-safe control logic and hardware architecture that meets the target integrity level (SIL per IEC 61508).
• Selection and specification of fail-safe controllers, safety-rated I/O, certified sensors and detectors, and hazard/beam-shutoff devices; definition of redundancy, diversity, and fault-tolerance schemes.
• Interface design between subsystems — e.g., RMS trips and ODH alarms feeding the PPS and ventilation — and to the broader machine protection and controls environment.

Deployment

• Procurement, panel build, and installation coordination across controls, electrical, mechanical, and facilities teams and any outside integrators.
• Oversight of sensor and detector installation to the placement defined by the physics and ventilation groups.
• Configuration management and change control from first article through the installed base.
• Test strategy and execution: factory acceptance testing (FAT), site acceptance testing (SAT), integrated end-to-end interlock testing, and validation against the documented safety requirements.
• Readiness and acceptance: dry runs, beam-permit / readiness reviews, and the documentation packages required by internal safety committees and the authority having jurisdiction.
• The periodic-test and recertification program that keeps these systems credited over their operating life.

Across the lifecycle

• Lead CoDR / PDR / FDR design reviews; maintain requirements traceability, failure analysis (FMEA), and a functional safety management plan.
• Author operating, maintenance, and test procedures; train operators and technicians.

What We Are Looking For

• BS or MS in electrical, controls, systems, or a related engineering discipline (or equivalent experience).
• 10+ years designing and commissioning safety-critical or functional-safety systems in a high-hazard environment (accelerator or research facility, process industry, or similar).
• Hands-on fail-safe PLC design — Siemens SIMATIC S7-1500F with TIA Portal Safety Advanced (or equivalent, e.g., Allen-Bradley GuardLogix).
• Working command of the IEC 61508 functional-safety lifecycle: SIL determination, allocation, and verification.
• Demonstrated ownership of at least one safety system from design through commissioning and acceptance.
• Experience running formal design reviews and producing verification/validation and traceability documentation.

And If You Bring This — Even Better

• Accelerator or DOE national-lab experience with PPS or other credited engineered controls (DOE O 420.2, ANSI/HPS N43.1).
• Familiarity with radiation monitoring instrumentation (gamma/neutron area monitors) and cryogenic ODH / gas-detection systems.
• TÜV Functional Safety Engineer certification (CFSE / FSEng).
• Familiarity with IEC 61511 (safety instrumented systems) and machinery-safety standards (IEC 62061 / ISO 13849).
• Comfort interfacing with regulators and authorities having jurisdiction.

What You Can Expect from Us

• 100% Company-funded health insurance for employee
• Company funded Life Insurance and disability insurance
• 401k contribution. 100% up to 3% of compensation, plus 50% match between 3% and 5%. Immediately vested.
• Flexible Paid Time-Off, Sick leave and Company Holidays
• Company Paid Two-weeks Winter Break
• Flexible Hybrid Work Model
• Chef prepared Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner at Palo Alto office

Pay transparency

The pay range for this position reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries at commencement of employment and is expected to be between USD 160,000/year-195,000/year. However, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple factors, including role, job-related knowledge, skills, relevant education and experience. The total compensation package for this position may also include other elements, including equity, and a full range of benefits. Details of all benefits will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment.

EEO Statement

xLight Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our policy is clear: there shall be no discrimination on the basis of age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage/civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity, or sexual orientation. We are an inclusive organization and actively promote equality of opportunity for all with the right mix of talent, skills and potential. We welcome all applications from a wide range of candidates. Selection for roles will be based on individual merit alone.