Optomechancial Engineer II
About The Position
The Instruments and Communications Division at JPL is renowned for developing and integrating technologies for advanced flight sensors, instruments, and deep space communications, covering the entire electromagnetic spectrum. Our expertise includes quantum technology, flight systems, spectrometers, radiometers, radars, mass spectrometers, and various sensors. We also pioneer deep space communication theory and develop navigational tracking systems. The Optics & Spectroscopy Section within this division offers world-leading capabilities in optical instrument development, focusing on research and development of optics-related technologies, system architecture, optical system design, opto-mechanical design, analysis, implementation, hardware integration, alignment, testing, and calibration. This role is within the Optomechanical Engineering group, which develops and implements precision structures for optical instruments for spaceflight, airborne, ground, and testbed systems, including telescopes, spectrometers, coronagraph components, and detector packaging.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, optical engineering, or related technical field with typically a minimum of 3 years of related work experience; Master’s degree in similar fields with a minimum of 1 years of related work experience; or Ph.D. with a minimum of 0 years of experience in an area related to mechanical and/or optical engineering.
- Experience with CAD tools (e.g., NX or SolidWorks) and mechanical drawings
- Experience with analytical approaches (e.g., first-principles hand calculations, tolerance stackup analyses, FEA, STOP, and scripting languages)
- Hands-on experience and practical knowledge in hardware integration, optical alignment, state-of-the-art measurement techniques
- Team leadership experience, especially with multidisciplinary teams over multiple phases in the project lifecycle
Nice To Haves
- Experience with technical contract management (CTM) for vendors of complex optical and mechanical hardware
- Experience developing hardware from concept to flight
- Advanced knowledge of materials and processes (M&P; e.g., metallurgy or adhesive bonding)
- Experience defining subsystem requirements, verification plans, and presenting at lifecycle reviews (e.g., preliminary and critical design reviews; PDR and CDR)
- Experience with NASTRAN FEA software or a similar analysis package
- Experience with Zemax Optics Studio or CodeV optical design software tools
- Experience with Python or MATLAB programming languages, for both data analysis and instrumentation automation tasks
Responsibilities
- Own optomechanical hardware through its full lifecycle, including design, analysis, review, procurement, assembly, integration, and precision alignment
- Lead multidisciplinary teams and deliver subsystems or instruments that meet technical requirements, cost constraints, and schedule commitments
- Use CAD tools to design precision spaceflight instrument parts (including optics and kinematic mounts), airborne instrument parts, and/or ground support equipment (GSE)
- Conduct structural finite element analysis (FEA) and structural-thermal-optical performance (STOP) analysis
- Support integration and test (I&T) activities including precision alignment and environmental qualification
Benefits
- variety of health, dental, vision, wellbeing, and retirement plans
- paid time off
- learning
- rideshare
- childcare
- flexible schedule
- parental leave
Stand Out From the Crowd
Upload your resume and get instant feedback on how well it matches this job.
What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
