Lasercom Engineer - All Levels

EON • Los Angeles, CA

2d • Onsite

About The Position

EON is building a high-throughput point-to-point data transport network in space using free-space laser links in Medium Earth Orbit. The Lasercom Engineer will join EON’s founding laser communications team at its R&D center in Culver City and contribute to Tbps-class optical links and a single-route demonstrator. The role is hired at all levels, from Associate through Senior and Principal, with title, scope, and compensation calibrated to experience.

Engineers own components of the optical chain from concept through first light, or help integrate the chain end to end. Depending on experience, work may focus on system architecture; coherent communications; optical amplification and beam control; optical design; pointing, acquisition, and tracking; or test and integration. The work spans analysis, design, hands-on hardware development, characterization, debugging, and integration. Engineers work directly with the lasercom team and own hardware that ships, making technical decisions with incomplete data in a seed-stage company.

Requirements

• Degree in physics, optical engineering, electrical engineering, or a related technical field.
• Hands-on lab experience in optics, photonics, lasers, or precision optical hardware.
• Strong fundamentals in optics and photonics, with the analytical depth to reason about a link end to end.
• Programming experience for modeling, analysis, or testing, using Python, MATLAB, or similar.
• Comfort moving quickly and making sound decisions without complete data.

Nice To Haves

• Direct free-space optics or laser communications experience in the ground or space segment.
• Coherent optical communications or terrestrial high-data-rate telecom experience, including transceivers, DSP, or FEC.
• Familiarity with pointing, acquisition, and tracking (PAT) and atmospheric optical effects.
• Proficiency with optical design and analysis tools such as Zemax or Code V; FRED experience is a plus.
• Experience taking optical hardware from prototype through integration, environmental testing, or field deployment.

Responsibilities

• Own a distinct link in the optical chain and carry it from concept through first light.
• Design and model a subsystem against system-level targets.
• Build, characterize, and debug hardware at the bench; establish test setups and validate performance against analysis.
• Define interfaces and integration constraints with engineers across the lasercom chain, and drive co-design trade-offs involving optical, electrical, and mechanical performance.
• Identify high-risk assumptions in the subsystem early and retire them through analysis, prototyping, and testing.
• Set and defend technical direction with incomplete data, documenting reasoning for the team.
• Depending on concentration, contribute to system architecture and link budgets; coherent transceivers, DSP, and FEC; optical amplification and beam control; telescope and free-space optical design; pointing, acquisition, and tracking; or lab test and end-to-end integration.

Benefits

• Company stock options for full-time employees.
• Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental insurance, with significant costs covered by the company for employees and dependents.
• Paid parental leave.
• Flexible PTO, including three weeks of accrued vacation and 10 company holidays per year.
• Relocation assistance to Los Angeles is available.
• Equipment and lab budget.

What This Job Offers

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