Staff Power Electronics Engineer

ZENTRA Power; Austin, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

ZENTRA Power Systems in Austin, TX, is seeking an experienced Staff Power Electronics Engineer to lead the design and development of next‑generation high‑power energy conversion hardware.

This senior, hands‑on role offers ownership across architecture, hardware design, prototyping, validation, and product industrialization, with collaboration across systems, controls, firmware, mechanical, manufacturing, and test teams.

Qualifications

• BS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 8+
• Experience taking power electronics hardware through design to production.
• Deep understanding of power converter topologies and practical design.

Responsibilities

• Architect, design, and deliver high-power power conversion hardware.
• Own major portions of the hardware development lifecycle from requirements through manufacturing release.
• Lead design of power stages, gate drives, sensing, protection, and DC-link components.
• Perform converter modeling, component selection, loss analysis, and thermal analysis.
• Lead schematic design and collaborate with PCB/layout engineers on manufacturable assemblies.
• Address high-voltage design considerations including insulation, clearance, grounding, shielding, and EMC.
• Develop prototype and validation plans and conduct hands-on bring-up, testing, and failure analysis.
• Drive design decisions for efficiency, power density, reliability, cost, manufacturability, and serviceability.
• Collaborate with mechanical and thermal teams on packaging, cooling, and integration.
• Support product safety, reliability, qualification, and certification activities.
• Transition designs to production with suppliers and contract manufacturers.
• Mentor engineers and establish hardware development processes.

Skills

Power electronics

High-voltage design

Schematic capture

Circuit simulation

PCB/layout

Thermal analysis

Prototype bring-up

Troubleshooting

Cross-disciplinary leadership

High-power testing

Education

Electrical Engineering (BS/MS/PhD)

Tools

PCB design tools

Circuit simulation tools

Power electronics modeling tools

Job description

Zentra Power Systems is seeking a Staff Power Electronics Engineer to lead the design and development of next-generation high-power energy conversion hardware.

This is a senior, hands-on technical role with significant ownership across power converter architecture, detailed hardware design, prototyping, validation, and product industrialization. The successful candidate will work closely with systems, controls, firmware, mechanical, manufacturing, and test engineers to bring new power conversion products from concept through production and field deployment.

This position offers the opportunity to grow into a broader technical leadership role within the hardware engineering organization as the company and engineering team expand.

Responsibilities

• Architect, design, and deliver high-power power conversion hardware.
• Own major portions of the hardware development lifecycle from requirements and architecture through detailed design, prototype, validation, qualification, and manufacturing release.
• Lead design of power stages, gate drives, sensing, protection, DC-link components, magnetics, and associated power electronics hardware.
• Perform converter modeling, component selection, loss analysis, thermal analysis, and design optimization.
• Lead schematic design and work closely with PCB/layout engineers on high-performance, manufacturable power electronics assemblies.
• Address high-voltage design considerations including insulation, electrical clearances, grounding, shielding, EMC, and protection.
• Develop prototype and validation plans and perform hands‑on hardware bring‑up, testing, troubleshooting, and failure analysis.
• Drive design decisions for efficiency, power density, reliability, cost, manufacturability, and serviceability.
• Work closely with mechanical and thermal engineers on packaging, cooling, interconnects, bus structures, and overall product integration.
• Collaborate with controls and firmware engineers to ensure successful integration of hardware, sensing, protection, and control functions.
• Support product safety, reliability, qualification, and certification activities.
• Work with suppliers and manufacturing partners to transition designs from engineering prototypes into repeatable production.
• Mentor other hardware engineers and help establish design practices, technical reviews, and hardware development processes.

Qualifications

• BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
• 8+ years of industry experience in power electronics hardware development, or equivalent demonstrated product-development experience.
• Strong hands‑on experience designing and testing high-power and/or high-voltage power converters.
• Demonstrated experience taking power electronics hardware through multiple stages of the product lifecycle, preferably from initial design through qualification and production.
• Deep understanding of power converter topologies and practical converter design.
• Strong experience with high-voltage power semiconductor devices, gate drives, sensing, and protection circuits.
• Strong understanding of magnetics, capacitors, switching behavior, semiconductor losses, thermal design, and parasitic effects.
• Experience with schematic capture, circuit simulation, and power electronics modeling tools.
• Strong hands‑on laboratory skills with high-power electrical equipment and instrumentation.
• Experience with PCB design/layout considerations for high-voltage, high-current, high-frequency power electronics.
• Working knowledge of EMC, safety, reliability, and design‑for‑manufacturing principles.
• Demonstrated ability to diagnose difficult hardware failures and drive problems through root cause and corrective action.
• Ability to lead technical work across multiple engineering disciplines while remaining deeply involved in hands‑on engineering.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with medium‑voltage or MW‑class power conversion systems.
• Experience with SiC‑based power converters.
• Experience with grid‑connected converters, energy storage, industrial drives, EV infrastructure, UPS systems, or other high‑power energy systems.
• Experience with insulation coordination, partial discharge, high‑voltage packaging, or related high‑voltage design considerations.
• Experience with high‑power magnetics, bus structures, protection systems, and high‑current interconnects.
• Experience with reliability engineering, accelerated‑life testing, FMEA, and product qualification.
• Experience supporting certification of industrial power‑electronics products.
• Experience transitioning products to contract manufacturers or high‑volume production.
• Experience mentoring engineers or providing technical leadership for multidisciplinary hardware‑development programs.

What We’re Looking For

We are looking for someone who has built real power electronics products, not only analyzed or simulated them.

The ideal candidate has personally taken high‑power hardware through design, prototype bring‑up, difficult failures, qualification, manufacturing, and field deployment. They combine strong first‑principles engineering with practical judgment about reliability, cost, manufacturability, and schedule.

This role is intended for a highly hands‑on technical leader. As Zentra grows, the successful candidate may take on broader responsibility for the company's power electronics hardware organization.

Based in Austin, TX

ZENTRA Power Systems

Quietly building the future of sustainable power.