Senior/Staff Electro-Optic Hardware Design Engineer

Job Summary:

We are seeking a senior- or staff-level engineer to own the detailed design, integration, and qualification of electro-optic hardware modules used in advanced photonic systems. Working alongside the Photonic Hardware Architect, this role turns system requirements and high-level concepts into robust rack-mountable or blade-format products containing optical amplifiers, attenuators, polarization controllers, power monitors, control electronics, and related optical and electro-optic subassemblies. The engineer will lead internal design execution, direct external development partners, and establish the experimental evidence and verification rigor needed for sound technical and production decisions.

Overview:

• Own detailed electro-optic module design from requirements and concept selection through prototype build, EVT, DVT, and transfer to manufacturing.
• Translate system architecture into complete optical, electrical, mechanical, thermal, firmware-control, and test interfaces for rack-mountable boxes and blade assemblies.
• Serve as the hands-on technical lead connecting system architects, photonics, electronics, mechanical engineering, test, operations, and external suppliers.

Responsibilities:

• Own the detailed design and integration of electro-optic modules incorporating optical amplifiers, variable or fixed attenuators, polarization controllers, optical switches, splitters, couplers, filters, power monitors, photodiodes, control electronics, and associated fiber infrastructure.
• Convert system and subsystem requirements into engineering specifications, interface definitions, optical power and noise budgets, schematics, component selections, bills of materials, mechanical layouts, tolerance analyses, and assembly documentation.
• Lead design trade studies across optical performance, noise, stability, dynamic range, control bandwidth, thermal behavior, reliability, serviceability, manufacturability, cost, and schedule; document decisions and residual risks.
• Design controlled experiments, select appropriate instrumentation and statistical methods, analyze data, and make technically defensible decisions when models, component data, or vendor claims are insufficient.
• Plan and execute module bring-up, characterization, margin testing, environmental testing, fault-injection testing, and reliability-oriented testing; automate measurements and data reduction where practical.
• Author verification and acceptance requirements, test plans, procedures, and reports for engineering builds and externally supplied modules, including clear pass/fail criteria and traceability to requirements.
• Lead EVT and DVT for internally developed and vendor-developed hardware; investigate failures, drive root-cause analysis and corrective actions, and ensure closure of test anomalies and design risks.
• Oversee internal design reviews and configuration control, ensuring that drawings, schematics, BOMs, firmware or control interfaces, calibration data, and released test documentation remain consistent and production-ready.
• Own technical collaboration with contract manufacturers and specialist vendors, including statements of work, requirements flow-down, design reviews, prototype acceptance, supplier qualification, and resolution of quality or yield issues.
• Partner with manufacturing and operations to implement design-for-manufacture, design-for-test, calibration, alignment, service, and end-of-line acceptance strategies that support repeatable builds and field use.
• Communicate status, decisions, risks, and recovery plans clearly across functions; provide concise, decision-oriented executive updates without losing the underlying technical rigor.

Core competencies / what success looks like:

• Detailed module designs meet performance, interface, safety, reliability, manufacturability, and serviceability requirements with objective verification evidence.
• EVT and DVT are executed with complete, traceable documentation; failures and technical risks are surfaced early and closed decisively.
• Internal teams and external suppliers deliver build-ready designs, consistent documentation, and repeatable acceptance results.
• Technical decisions are made quickly but rigorously through focused experiments, clear trade studies, and concise communication.

Experience/Qualifications:

Required Qualifications

• B.S. or higher in electrical engineering, optical engineering, physics, mechanical engineering, or a related field, with substantial relevant industry experience.
• Demonstrated ownership of detailed electro-optic or opto-mechanical hardware design through prototype, verification, qualification, and manufacturing release.
• Strong hands-on knowledge of fiber-optic components and subsystems, including amplifiers, attenuators, polarization control, optical power monitoring, photodetection, and practical fiber management.
• Experience integrating optical, analog and digital electronics, thermal management, mechanical packaging, connectors, power distribution, communications, and safety features in rack-mountable or blade-format equipment.
• Proficiency developing requirements, interface-control documentation, optical and electrical budgets, verification matrices, test plans, procedures, acceptance criteria, and formal test reports.
• Strong experimental judgment, including test design, instrumentation, measurement uncertainty, data analysis, and the ability to distinguish component limitations from integration or test artifacts.
• Experience leading EVT/DVT, hardware bring-up, structured debugging, failure analysis, root-cause investigation, and corrective-action closure.
• Proven ability to direct vendors and contract manufacturers while maintaining technical ownership, schedule discipline, document quality, and configuration control.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to collaborate across disciplines and distill complex technical work into efficient executive-level updates.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience with high-power or low-noise optical amplification, photonic calibration, metrology, quantum photonics, or precision instrumentation.
• Familiarity with laser and electrical safety, EMI/EMC, thermal and environmental qualification, reliability methods, and applicable product-compliance practices.
• Experience creating automated laboratory or production test systems using Python, LabVIEW, MATLAB, or similar tools.
• Working knowledge of statistical tolerance analysis, measurement-system analysis, design of experiments, reliability growth, and supplier quality methods.
• Experience transferring low-volume, high-complexity hardware into repeatable production and supporting sustaining engineering or field failure analysis.