PhD Residency, Utility-Scale Power Electronics (Winter 2026 / Summer 2027)

Tapestry • Mountain View, CA

10d • Onsite

About The Position

This is a full-time, six-month PhD residency designed for candidates conducting doctoral research in power electronics, power systems, or advanced control. In this role, you will lead advanced research and development efforts focused on improving the stability, resilience, and controllability of the electric grid through next-generation utility-scale inverter control. Your work will center on designing, simulating, and validating novel control and orchestration algorithms for inverter-based resources operating under a wide range of grid conditions. Your primary objective will be to expand Tapestry’s control and orchestration capabilities by developing advanced inverter control strategies that address critical challenges such as mode shifting, automatic gain control, and stable operation across strong and weak grid environments. You will work from concept through implementation, contributing both theoretical insight and practical simulation artifacts that inform future product development.

Requirements

• Currently enrolled in a PhD program in Electrical Engineering, Power Electronics, Power Systems, Control Systems, or a closely related field.
• Strong foundational knowledge of power electronics and utility-scale power systems
• Experience with grid-forming, grid-following, or microgrid control strategies.
• Hands-on experience with the Texas Instruments (TI) Digital Signal Processor (DSP) i.e C2000 and relevant software tools i.e Code Composer Studio(CCS).
• Experience designing or analyzing control systems for inverter-based resources i.e inverter firmware development using interrupts etc.
• Hands-on experience with simulation tools such as MATLAB/Simulink, PLECS, and/or equivalent.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to reason about system stability and dynamic behavior.
• Clear written and verbal communication skills for technical documentation and collaboration.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with grid-forming, grid-following, or microgrid control strategies implementation using hierarchical control.
• Familiarity with wide-bandgap (WBG) devices and inverter hardware considerations.
• Exposure to firmware or hardware-software interface constraints for power electronics.
• Experience translating academic research into applied or industry-focused outcomes.
• Interest in grid modernization, renewable integration, and decarbonization of the electric power system.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop advanced control algorithms for utility-scale inverter systems focused on grid stability and resilience.
• Create and validate mode-shifting inverter control strategies that enable seamless transitions between operating modes, such as grid-following (GFL) and grid-forming (GFM) for both single and three phase inverters.
• Design and implement Automatic Gain Control (AGC) approaches that dynamically adapt inverter behavior based on real-time grid conditions.
• Simulate and evaluate control strategies under a range of operating conditions, including strong grid, weak grid, and transient scenarios.
• Translate advanced control concepts into implementation-ready algorithms suitable for future firmware or hardware integration.
• Collaborate with power systems, software, and product teams to align research outcomes with real-world grid applications.
• Produce clear technical documentation outlining control design, assumptions, performance tradeoffs, and stability margins.

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Immersion in a world-class research environment at the intersection of AI and climate tech.
• Competitive residency stipend and housing relocation support for the duration of the program.
• Direct mentorship from industry-leading research scientists and engineers.
• Opportunity to work on "moonshot" problems with access to Alphabet-scale compute and resources.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree