Optical Communications Team Lead
About The Position
Bright Silicon Technologies (BST) is seeking a technical program leader to guide their OCTANE (Optical Communication Terminal for Advanced Networking) product from an advanced lab prototype to live airborne demonstrations, including integration into the Air Force. This role involves building and leading a team of approximately six engineers specializing in modem/DSP, FPGA and embedded firmware, optoelectronic hardware, and PAT controls. The lead will be responsible for the terminal-level architecture and schedule, ensuring seamless integration of the modem, electronics, and the solid-state beam-steering front end (Lightfield Directing Array). The position requires strong optical communications expertise to guide the team effectively.
Requirements
- BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Physics, or a related field.
- Hands-on experience building optical communications systems (lasercom, FSO, optical inter-satellite links, or fiber-coupled optical transceivers), from design through integration and test.
- Proven experience leading multidisciplinary engineering teams through complex hardware/software integration, as a team lead, principal engineer, program lead, or manager.
- Strong systems-level understanding of a communications link: link budgets, modem and physical-layer concepts, and how the optical, electronic, and software pieces interact.
- Experience taking a system from prototype to a deployable product.
- Ability to guide engineers outside their home discipline and build a team from scratch.
- U.S. Person status (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual), as the role involves CUI and ITAR material.
Nice To Haves
- Experience with SDA optical standards, JLIS/OIC2, or multi-waveform lasercom architectures.
- Experience integrating optical payloads into airborne pods, aircraft, or satellites.
- Familiarity with qualification of government payloads.
Responsibilities
- Lead the OCTANE program technically, including roadmap, milestones, risk management, and customer and partner engagement.
- Build, hire, and mentor a team of approximately 6 engineers, many of whom may be new to optical communications.
- Own the terminal architecture and link budget, and define interfaces between the optical front end, fiber-coupled back end, and modem.
- Collaborate with the modem lead and team on waveform, FEC, and multi-waveform strategy to meet SDA and defense interoperability standards.
- Lead terminal integration and test, encompassing lab validation, environmental qualification, and flight demonstrations.
- Coordinate with the optical and controls team on PAT and adaptive optics at the system level.
- Bridge R&D, systems engineering, and production to transition OCTANE to scaled manufacturing and new optical communications architectures.
Benefits
- Equity Incentive Plan
- Comprehensive medical, dental and vision along with other voluntary benefits
- 3% employer contribution to employee 401(K)
- Development and career growth opportunities
- Generous paid time off and paid company holidays
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Manager
