Fabrication Manufacturing Engineer

Coherent Corp.•Mount Olive, NJ

3h•Onsite

About The Position

Coherent Corp. is a global leader in lasers, engineered materials, and networking components, operating as a vertically integrated manufacturing company. They develop innovative products for diverse applications across industrial, optical communications, military, life sciences, semiconductor equipment, and consumer markets. The company offers a comprehensive career development platform and a competitive compensation program. The Fabrication Manufacturing Engineer role involves leading the development, optimization, and transfer of advanced polishing and finishing processes for NLO crystal and exotic materials, driving process capability and yield improvement from prototype to production. This position requires executing and overseeing high-precision fabrication operations, ensuring world-class optical quality through metrology, partnering with production for troubleshooting, designing custom tooling, and championing continuous improvement and automation initiatives to scale manufacturing excellence.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Optical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field.
Typically requires a minimum of 5 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 3 years and a Master’s degree; or a PhD without years experience; or equivalent work experience.
Demonstrated experience handling and processing crystals, including crystal orientation (e.g., C-axis sapphire).
Strong understanding of how crystal properties influence optical and mechanical performance.
3+ years in an optics manufacturing or production environment.
Hands-on experience with CNC machining, diamond turning, and double-sided polishing.
Proficiency with CAD tools such as SolidWorks or AutoCAD.
Experience using data analysis tools like MATLAB or Python to drive process decisions.
Strong command of Design of Experiments (DOE) and Statistical Process Control (SPC).
Comfortable maintaining, improving, and debugging fabrication equipment.
Ability to mentor technicians, collaborate cross-functionally, and clearly communicate technical risks and tradeoffs to leadership or external partners.
Follow the site EHS procedures and Coherent Corp. Corporate EHS standards.
Be responsible for the execution and maintenance of the ISO 9000, 9001, 14001 and/or other applicable standards that may apply to the relevant roles and responsibilities within the Quality Management System and Environmental Management System (depending on location).
Ensure adherence to company’s values (ICARE) in all aspects of your position at Coherent Corp.: Integrity – Create an Environment of Trust, Collaboration – Innovate Through the Sharing of Ideas, Accountability – Own the Process and the Outcome, Respect – Recognize the Value in Everyone, Enthusiasm – Find a Sense of Purpose in Work.

Nice To Haves

Master’s or PhD preferred for highly specialized crystal or optical roles.

Responsibilities

Lead the development, optimization, and transfer of advanced polishing and finishing processes for NLO crystal and exotic materials including oxides, fluorides, Ge, Si, and sapphire.
Drive process capability, yield improvement, and manufacturability from prototype through production.
Execute and oversee high-precision fabrication operations such as CNC generating, deterministic corrective finishing, and manual pitch or pad polishing.
Work with complex optical geometries including aspheres and freeform surfaces.
Ensure world-class optical quality using interferometry (flats and spheres), X-ray diffraction (XRD) for crystal orientation, and spectrophotometry.
Translate metrology data into actionable process improvements.
Partner with the production floor to troubleshoot equipment and process issues using structured root cause failure analysis (RCFA).
Implement robust technical solutions that improve yield, repeatability, and throughput.
Design or support custom fixtures and tooling to enable fabrication of delicate, unconventional, or challenging crystal geometries.
Champion continuous improvement initiatives, including automation, robotics, and advanced process controls to scale manufacturing excellence.