Optics Lab Manager

Overview Energy•Ashburn, VA

About The Position

Overview Energy is hiring an Optics Lab Manager to own its optics laboratory, including the space, equipment, test setups, and experiments. The role is the hands-on implementation lead for the optics team, translating experimentation goals into functioning lab hardware and removing lab-capacity constraints to accelerate learning. The position reports to the Director of Optics and owns experimentation as the bridge between design and fielding. Working with an integrated project team, the manager will derive experimental setups to address technical risks, participate in early design discussions, propose rapid lab tests, and feed results back into design. The role also establishes repeatable processes and trains and mentors the growing team. The position involves planning and running experiments; building, aligning, and troubleshooting optical test setups; specifying, procuring, and establishing lab equipment and infrastructure; automating test and data-acquisition workflows; maintaining comprehensive records; managing laser safety for high-power near-infrared systems; and supporting outdoor field verification of flight-representative hardware. The position is based in the Northern Virginia / Washington, DC area. It is subject to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including ITAR; candidates must meet the stated citizenship, residency, protected-individual, or authorization eligibility requirements.

Requirements

At least 7 years of hands-on experimental lab experience in optics, lasers, or photonics; graduate research, national laboratory, defense, or industry experience counts.
A B.S. in physics, optics, or a related field, or equivalent hands-on optics lab experience.
Ability to independently design, build, align, and troubleshoot free-space optical setups.
Experience producing custom mounts and fixtures by designing them in CAD (for example, Siemens NX), fabricating them, or sourcing them.
Working knowledge of lasers, detectors, and core optical components such as lenses, mirrors, gratings, and coatings.
Hands-on experience using spectrometers and optical spectrum analyzers (OSAs).
Optical fiber handling and assembly experience, including cleaving, splicing, terminating, and inspection.
Understanding of thermal management for laser systems, including chillers and water- or conduction-cooled laser heads.
Disciplined documentation habits, including procedures, lab notebooks, and test records others can rely on.
Laser safety training and hands-on practice working safely with Class 3B and Class 4 lasers under a formal laser safety program.
Must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required U.S. Department of State authorizations, due to ITAR requirements.

Nice To Haves

Hands-on experience with optical test and metrology equipment, including laser interferometers (such as Zygo or 4D Technology), wavefront sensors, beam profilers, optical power and energy meters, scientific CMOS/CCD and InGaAs SWIR cameras, and autocollimators.
Thermal vacuum chamber (TVAC) integration and testing experience.
Experience planning or supporting outdoor or long-range field tests of optical or laser systems.
Experience serving as a Laser Safety Officer (LSO) under ANSI Z136.1; a Certified Laser Safety Officer (CLSO) credential is a plus.
Familiarity with cleanroom practices and ISO 14644-1 cleanroom classifications (ISO 5 to ISO 8).
Hands-on machining or fabrication skills.
Experience setting up or managing a lab, including equipment selection and budgets.
Experience training or mentoring other lab staff or students.
Military technical, national laboratory, or space hardware program experience.

Responsibilities

Translate project goals and technical risks into experiment plans and setups, selecting methods and estimating time requirements.
Design or fabricate custom mounts and fixtures, and assemble optical, fiber, mechanical, and electronic components into functioning test cells.
Execute test campaigns with optics engineers, capture data, and report actionable conclusions supported by tailored data products.
Specify equipment, optical tables, lasers, detectors, and infrastructure; procure and establish the lab.
Align free-space optical systems, diagnose control and data-acquisition problems, and perform first-pass debugging.
Write instrument-control and data-acquisition code using Python, LabVIEW, or MATLAB to make tests faster and repeatable.
Maintain experiment procedures, build and test records, issue logs, and equipment inventory.
Run laser safety practices for high-power NIR systems, including Class 3B and Class 4 lasers.
Plan and help execute field verification of flight-representative hardware, including outdoor campaigns to characterize beam performance over long distances.
Participate in early design discussions, propose rapid lab tests, and feed experiment results back into design.
Implement repeatable processes and train and mentor the growing team.