Research Hardware Engineer

Convergent Research • San Francisco, CA

5d

About The Position

Arbor Neuroscience (formerly Forest Neurotech) is a nonprofit research organization focused on solving the challenge of reliably changing brain circuits for treating neurological disorders. They are building an experimental platform that includes the Forest 1 ultrasound system, which images and will soon stimulate brain activity. The goal is to use this data to build models that make neuromodulation predictable. Arbor is a Focused Research Organization within the Convergent Research family, aiming to conduct multidisciplinary translational work. The company is well-funded for its initial phase and is looking for individuals who will shape its future. This role is crucial for ensuring the existence of the hardware necessary to conduct scientific experiments. The work involves developing and refining the Forest 1 ultrasound device, creating portable and robust systems for human studies, and building a novel platform combining electrophysiology and ultrasound for animal studies. The organization also aims to make these tools accessible to the broader research community by ensuring they are well-documented, reproducible, and robust. The role spans mechanical, electrical, and bioengineering disciplines, with an emphasis on understanding needs, determining in-house development versus external contracting, and managing contractors. Team members are expected to contribute beyond their defined roles due to the small team size. Hiring is at multiple levels, with scope and title adjusted based on experience. Early-career individuals will own hardware work in close collaboration with scientists, while more experienced candidates will set engineering direction and build a team.

Requirements

• Depth in at least one of mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, or bioengineering, and enough working knowledge of the others to know what is needed and who to ask
• A record of building physical things that worked: instruments, devices, rigs, or research hardware, ideally in a setting where requirements were not always clear or fixed
• Credibility and judgment to work with a strong external engineering team and ensure the outcome meets requirements
• Comfort with CAD
• Comfort with simple board design
• A network to draw on for work not done in-house
• Genuine interest in the experiments and clinical applications the hardware serves
• Directness without friction – ability to say what you think, ask when you don't know, and not compete with colleagues

Nice To Haves

• Experience with ultrasound systems or transducers
• Experience with neural interfaces, electrodes, or implantable hardware
• Experience with wearable or at-home medical devices
• Experience working with large animals
• Experience at a small company or academic lab where own tooling was built
• Regulatory or safety testing experience
• A neuroscience background (though not required, a desire to learn one is)

Responsibilities

• Work directly with the scientists running the experiments to understand their needs and translate them into hardware requirements
• Own Arbor's side of Forest 1 development: characterize how the current device performs in experiments, define requirements for the next version, and work with the engineering partner to get it built
• Design, build, and help validate hardware for a novel platform combining bidirectional electrophysiology and ultrasound in animals, including implants, headstage interfaces, simple circuit boards, and test rigs
• Make Forest 1 portable and robust enough for use outside the clinic
• Identify what should be built in-house and what should be contracted out, and manage contractors
• Prepare platforms for use by outside groups: documentation, reproducibility, and robustness

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision – most plans fully covered for you and your dependents
• 401(k) with up to 6% match
• Company-paid life and AD&D, with voluntary supplemental options
• 15 holidays plus a floating day for your birthday
• 3 weeks PTO increasing with tenure
• Separate sick leave

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed