Manager, Cryogenics Process Control

PsiQuantum•Milpitas, CA

21h•$145,800 - $244,700•Onsite

About The Position

PsiQuantum's mission is to build the first useful quantum computers: machines capable of delivering the breakthroughs the field has long promised. Since our founding in 2016, our singular focus has been to build and deploy million-qubit, fault-tolerant quantum systems. Quantum computers harness the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems that even the most advanced supercomputers or AI systems will never reach. Their impact will span energy, pharmaceuticals, finance, agriculture, transportation, materials, and other foundational industries. Our architecture and approach is based on silicon photonics. By leveraging the advanced semiconductor manufacturing industry, including partners like GlobalFoundries, we use the same high-volume processes that already produce billions of chips for telecom and consumer electronics. Photonics offers natural advantages for scale: photons don't feel heat, are immune to electromagnetic interference, and integrate with existing cryogenic cooling and standard fiber-optic infrastructure. That approach has since been tested at the highest level of scrutiny the U.S. government applies to emerging technology, and it has held up. In 2025, PsiQuantum closed a $1 billion funding round that valued the company at $7 billion. In 2026, the U.S. Department of Commerce signed a $100 million Letter of Intent under the CHIPS and Science Act, followed by a $125 million agreement with DARPA under Stage C of its Quantum Benchmarking Initiative, PsiQuantum's most valuable U.S. government agreement to date. This year, we also broke ground on our utility-scale quantum computer in Brisbane, Australia, and continued building out our Chicago site. Victor Peng, our CEO, and co-founder Jeremy O'Brien, now Executive Chairman, lead a team and board that reflects how seriously the world is taking this build, joined this year by Intel's Lip-Bu Tan and Atomico's Niklas Zennström. PsiQuantum also develops the algorithms and software needed to make these systems commercially valuable. Our application, software, and industry teams work directly with leading Fortune 500 companies, including Airbus, Lockheed Martin, Mercedes-Benz, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Mitsubishi Chemical, to prepare quantum solutions for real-world impact. Quantum computing is not an extension of classical computing. It represents a fundamental shift, and a path to mastering challenges that cannot be solved any other way. The potential is enormous, and we now have the funding, the government validation, and the sites under construction to make it real. The Manager, Process Control Engineer is responsible for the design, implementation, commissioning, and operation of the instrumentation, electrical, and control systems supporting PsiQuantum's cryogenic infrastructure, including cryoplants, cryostats, and cryogenic distribution systems. This role provides hands-on technical leadership while developing the controls architecture from the ground up. The successful candidate will develop PLC hardware and software, lead commissioning activities, and ensure reliable operation of the cryogenic control systems. In addition to technical ownership, the Manager, Process Control Engineering will build and mentor the PsiQuantum Cryogenics Controls team, establishing best practices in instrumentation, automation, PLC programming, and system operation. PsiQuantum designs, installs, commissions, and operates cryogenic infrastructure across multiple locations worldwide. This position is based in Milpitas, California, with travel required to support global installations and operations.

Requirements

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Controls Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or a related engineering discipline.
7–10+ years of experience designing and commissioning industrial process control systems.
Strong hands-on experience with PLC-based automation systems.
Experience designing electrical and instrumentation systems for industrial facilities, including instrumentation, PLC hardware, network, motors, VFDs, and power distribution up to 480 VAC.
Demonstrated experience programming PLCs, developing HMI applications, implementing process automation, and troubleshooting complex control systems.
Strong understanding of instrumentation, process measurements, control valves, actuators, alarms, and safety interlocks.
Ability to develop and interpret P&IDs, control narratives, cause-and-effect matrices, electrical drawings, and instrumentation documentation.
Experience leading multidisciplinary engineering projects from design through commissioning and operations.
Strong communication and leadership skills, with the ability to train and mentor engineers and technicians and develop operating and maintenance procedures.

Responsibilities

Lead the design, implementation, and commissioning of PLC-based cryogenic control system, including control architecture, P&IDs, control narratives, control logic, alarms, and safety interlocks.
Serve as the electrical engineering lead for the cryogenic system, with responsibility for electrical systems up 24 to 480 V and coordination with external specialists for higher-voltage installations.
Design, specify, install, and commission instrumentation, control panels, PLC cabinets, field wiring, UPS systems, motors, VFDs, electrical heaters, and associated power distribution.
Define the controls hardware architecture, including instrumentation, PLCs, remote I/O, industrial networks, communications, and system integration.
Select instrumentation and controls hardware, work closely with equipment vendors, participate in design reviews and Factory Acceptance Tests (FAT), and ensure third-party equipment complies with PsiQuantum standards.
Collaborate with Cryogenic Engineers to develop control philosophies, operating sequences, and control narratives for all cryogenic equipment.
Develop the PLC software based on the control philosophy; develop and test control logic, safety interlocks, and automation functions.
Develop Human-Machine Interface (HMI) applications to provide intuitive operation, diagnostics, trending, and alarm management.
Lead installation, loop checks, I/O verification, bench testing, commissioning, startup, and performance validation of new cryogenic systems.
Develop systems for data acquisition, historian integration, trending, diagnostics, and performance analytics to support optimization, troubleshooting, and root-cause analysis.
Troubleshoot complex instrumentation, electrical, and automation issues during commissioning and plant operations.
Provide day-to-day, hand-on technical leadership for Process Controls engineers and technicians by assigning work, setting priorities, mentoring team members, reviewing designs, and supporting professional development.
Support cryogenic operations by participating in incident investigations, system upgrades, reliability improvements, and on-call technical support when required