Applications Engineering, Architect- Missile Defense

Synopsys•Exton, PA

31d•$172,000 - $258,000•Onsite

About The Position

Synopsys is hiring an Applications Engineering Architect for missile defense work with Ansys Government Initiatives. The role focuses on advanced modeling and simulation for aerospace and defense customers, supporting air and missile defense programs that help the DoD evaluate threats, test algorithms, train AI systems, and conduct mission-level analysis. The position is primarily onsite with a customer in Huntsville, Alabama, with some travel to Dayton, Ohio, and Exton, Pennsylvania. The architect will build and validate physics-based models of threat trajectories, flight dynamics, staging events, and multi-spectral signatures, and develop radar phenomenology models for realistic engagement scenarios. The role also supports synthetic dataset creation for AI/ML training and integrates threat and sensing models into simulation and analysis environments, including frameworks such as STK and AFSIM. The position requires collaboration with signature experts, sensor engineers, government stakeholders, and other technical specialists to align simulation fidelity with operational requirements and physical constraints. The successful candidate will provide technical leadership on modeling requirements, simulation architecture, and fidelity tradeoffs for emerging programs involving generative simulation and AI-enabled battle management. They will work across the missile defense kill chain, including sensing, track fusion, discrimination, and custody management, while documenting assumptions and supporting multiple technical efforts. The work is intended to inform defense system evaluation and acquisition, support algorithm development, and advance trusted modeling and simulation capabilities for national security programs.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Physics, Computer Science, or a related field with 12 or more years of professional experience; alternatively, a master's degree with 10 or more years, or a Ph.D. with 7 or more years.
U.S. citizenship and an active DoD TS/SCI clearance.
Deep domain knowledge of air and missile defense systems, including sensor architectures, threat trajectories, and multi-spectral signature modeling.
Demonstrated experience modeling radar phenomenology and RF sensing systems, including radar bands, target detection, and sensor-observable behaviors.
Hands-on experience with missile flight dynamics, staging events, and the impact of trajectory behavior on sensor observables across an engagement timeline.
Proficiency in MATLAB or Python for building models, scripting interfaces, and integrating with DoD systems and simulation frameworks.
Ability to work with ambiguity, develop models while requirements are being defined, and document assumptions.
Ability to communicate technical concepts to government stakeholders and collaborate with engineers and junior technical staff.
Experience with real-world radar or EO/IR data and validation against measured data.
Ability to manage multiple technical efforts, keep stakeholders aligned, and maintain timelines without sacrificing technical rigor.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Systems Tool Kit (STK).
Experience with Advanced Framework for Simulation, Integration and Modeling (AFSIM).
Familiarity with track fusion, discrimination algorithms, and battle management concepts.

Responsibilities

Build high-fidelity threat trajectory models, including staging events, flight dynamics, and multi-spectral signature behaviors across RF, IR, and other sensor-observable spectra.
Develop and integrate radar phenomenology models that represent target detection, tracking, and characterization across radar bands and sensor architectures in realistic engagement scenarios.
Support creation of synthetic datasets for AI/ML training, including target-present and target-absent scenarios designed to reduce algorithmic bias and improve model robustness.
Collaborate with signature characterization experts, sensor engineers, and government stakeholders to align simulation fidelity with operational requirements and physics-based constraints.
Implement sensing system models within frameworks such as STK and AFSIM, representing track fusion, discrimination logic, and custody management across the missile defense kill chain.
Provide technical leadership on modeling requirements, simulation architecture, and fidelity tradeoffs for programs involving generative simulation and AI-enabled battle management.
Integrate threat modeling and sensor simulations into broader analysis and experimentation environments used by DoD customers for system development and algorithm evaluation.
Work with customers and technical stakeholders to establish shared understanding of model fidelity, build models using available data, validate against measurable information, and document assumptions.
Manage multiple technical efforts, align stakeholders, maintain timelines, and advance deliverables while maintaining technical rigor.