Electronics Engineer

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Job Summary

Caltech Optical Observatories is seeking an early-career Electrical Engineer to join an enthusiastic and creative electronics team within the multidisciplinary Optical/Infrared (OIR) instrumentation group. While fostering a community of respect, learning, and individual growth, the OIR group designs, fabricates, and commissions astronomical instrumentation systems for Palomar, Gemini, Keck Observatories, and the planned Thirty Meter Telescope, as well as developing telescopes in space and the Antarctic. With mentorship from internationally recognized experts, the candidate will contribute to electronic subsystems within state-of-the-art optical and infrared imaging systems and spectrographs to be deployed at the most advanced observatories conducting research in astronomy, cosmology, and planetary science. Duties will include analog and digital design of low noise data acquisition systems, telemetry, signal transmission and processing, thermal controls, motor drives for precision and/or cryogenic mechanisms, procurement, integration, performance characterization, and commissioning as part of a multidisciplinary team of engineers and scientists.

Previous and anticipated projects include deployment of ultraviolet, optical, and near-infrared detectors in large-format mosaics requiring rapid readout, spectrograph detector systems demanding exquisite noise performance, and fast-frame-rate detectors for adaptive optics (wavefront sensing in both optical and NIR). Our group has received NSF grants to support the development of large format quantizing CCDs which do not suffer from the unacceptable readout time of previous implementations. Additionally, the COO team conducts basic research into phenomena affecting the feasibility or design of future space missions and large telescopes, including how device physics limits measurement accuracy. The electronics team has developed novel device characterization and calibration methods to mitigate these sources of systematic errors.

Essential Job Duties

• Analog and digital circuit design for data acquisition, environmental telemetry, thermal controls, and illumination systems, as required for scientific imaging and spectroscopy.
• Implementation of motor drives, encoders, and servo control systems, for both room temperature and cryogenic applications.
• Simulation of analog electronics and control systems.
• Schematic capture and printed circuit layout.
• Packaging and enclosure design, ranging from small subassemblies to full thermally controlled electronics racks.
• Develop/modify software/firmware for interfacing and controlling instrument mechanisms, temperature controls, and image sensors in the context of specialized astronomical instruments. 
• Support the execution of experiments and data analysis to investigate and mitigate the physical sources of errors in astronomical observations such as precision photometry, astrometry, and point spread function shape measurement.
• Troubleshooting and lifecycle support for camera systems deployed at Caltech observatories.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and 4+ years of related experience.
• Sound understanding of analog circuit design, with a focus on methods to decompose circuits into key elements whose behavior can be approximated to identify performance limitations.
• Fluency with modern design tools for analog and digital electronics.
• Understanding of best practices for PCB design and manufacture.
• Understanding of best practices for subsystem packaging, cabling, grounding, shielding, and signal transmission.
• Experience integrating mixed hardware/software systems.
• Excellent oral and written technical and nontechnical communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills are essential. Must work well within diverse technical and scientific teams.
• Willingness to show initiative when performing system design, integration, and troubleshooting while working collaboratively within a team that includes experts in the field.
• Occasional travel and work assignments at high altitudes and in low light environments; requires DMV check and successful pre-employment physical, including vision screening. Ability to lift 20 lbs.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Preferred Qualifications

• M.S. degree in electrical engineering 3+ years related experience.
• Proficiency in many of the following technical areas: analog circuit design, servo design and tuning, grounding, and packaging of low-noise electronics, high-speed analog and digital signal transmission, gate array programming, state machine design, schematic capture, circuit simulation, PCB layout, and operation and testing of cryogenic/vacuum systems.
• Experience in FPGA programming and interfacing.

Required Documents

• Resume
• Cover Letter