Battery Materials Characterization Engineer

Apple • Santa Clara, CA

2d

About The Position

As part of the Battery Engineering group, you'll help craft creative battery solutions that deliver more energy in smaller spaces than ever before. You'll work across fields to transform improved hardware elements into a single, integrated design. Join us, and you'll help us innovate new battery technologies that continually outperform the previous iterations. By collaborating with other product development groups across Apple, you'll push the industry boundaries of what batteries can do and improve the product experience for our customers across the world.

As part of the materials characterization team, you will function as the subject matter expert for structural characterization and chemical analysis of lithium-ion battery materials and systems, with a strong foundation in Raman spectroscopy and complementary techniques including SEM, FIB-SEM, and FTIR. You will develop methods based on project needs to build a deep understanding of failure mechanisms and root causes in lithium-ion batteries, while also reviewing data from other analysts and coordinating the use of multiple techniques to drive materials understanding and causations between materials properties and performance.

Requirements

• BS in chemistry, materials science, chemical engineering, or related field.
• A minimum of 3 years of relevant industry experience.
• Experience with Raman spectroscopy or relevant.
• Experience with at least one characterization technique - SEM, FTIR or XRD.

Nice To Haves

• M.S. or Ph.D. in chemistry, materials science, chemical engineering, or related field.
• Graduate-level coursework or research involving Raman spectroscopy and electron microscopy applied to energy storage materials.
• Deep knowledge of Raman spectroscopy for Li-ion battery materials, including interpretation of spectra for common materials (e.g., graphite, silicon, NMC/NCA cathodes, LFP, solid electrolytes).
• Hands-on experience with SEM and FIB-SEM, including sample preparation, cross-sectioning, imaging, and EDS analysis of battery materials.
• Proficiency in FTIR spectroscopy (transmission, ATR, and/or microscopy modes) for chemical characterization of battery-relevant materials.
• Demonstrated track record of applying Raman and complementary characterization techniques (SEM, FIB-SEM, FTIR) to solve critical problems in battery material development and/or identification of battery degradation mechanisms.
• Experience handling and preparing air-sensitive battery materials (glovebox operation, inert atmosphere sample transfer).
• Experience with additional characterization techniques such as XRD, XPS, TEM, or optical microscopy.

Responsibilities

• Function as the subject matter expert for structural characterization and chemical analysis of lithium-ion battery materials and systems.
• Develop methods based on project needs to build a deep understanding of failure mechanisms and root causes in lithium-ion batteries.
• Review data from other analysts.
• Coordinate the use of multiple techniques to drive materials understanding and causations between materials properties and performance.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior