Power Electronics Controls Engineer, Energy Storage

Redwood Materials • San Francisco, CA

4d

About The Position

Redwood Materials is localizing a global battery supply chain that seamlessly integrates recovery, reuse, and recycling — keeping critical minerals in circulation and driving the energy transition. Founded in 2019, we’re delivering low-cost and large-scale energy storage and producing battery materials in the U.S. for the first time, all from batteries we already have. Power Electronics Controls Engineer, Energy Storage Essential Duties: You will be an early member of a product design team, responsible for the detailed power electronics design, prototype, and launch into high-volume production of an efficient, cost effective, highly manufacturable, and technologically leading-edge power converter. Familiar with high voltage (up to ~1,000 – 2,000VDC and 480VAC) and high power (~10 – 200kW) power converters, you can quantitatively compare and select topologies, control algorithms, semiconductors, and magnetics while respecting engineering constraints (efficiency, cost, reliability, simplicity, etc). You understand both hard- and soft-switched topologies. Responsibilities include: You can create highly accurate time-domain control and thermal models of your circuits to inform software and mechanical development, and while your core specialty is high-power circuitry design, you have a working understanding of microprocessor selection, electrical insulation, and thermal interface. Knowing how important circuit board layout is in high-power conversion, you’re willing to jump in and do the most critical parts of the powertrain layout yourself. The ideal candidate is highly self-driven, adaptable to a startup environment, and eager to take on technical challenges. You’re a doer, excited about working in a dynamic, fast-paced setting, and want to shape the electrical engineering function within a new department at Redwood. If necessary, we will adjust the job level to suit your experience and responsibilities. The qualifications below are just that – desired – if you feel you’re highly qualified for this role but are missing a few of the below line items, we encourage you to apply anyway.

Requirements

• Familiar with high voltage (up to ~1,000 – 2,000VDC and 480VAC) and high power (~10 – 200kW) power converters
• You understand both hard- and soft-switched topologies.
• You have a working understanding of microprocessor selection, electrical insulation, and thermal interface.

Nice To Haves

• BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering, with a focus in power electronics
• 7+ years of experience in electrical engineering, with a strong focus in power conversion or energy storage products, ideally for mass production
• Experience in high-voltage (up to 2000VDC, and 480VAC) design
• Intimately familiar with techniques for efficiency optimization
• Basic knowledge of control theory and embedded systems
• Strong analytical / problem solving skills
• Experience in rapid iterations on prototypes based on customer, supplier, and co-worker feedback
• Strong understanding of power electronics topologies and fundamentals (AC/DC, DC/DC)
• Experience with semiconductor selections, gate drive, and protection circuit design
• Skilled in mentoring test technicians to design tests, interpret test results, and define part maturity criteria
• Skilled at working with basic EE tools like oscilloscopes, network analyzers, signal Generators, etc
• Proven track record as a electrical engineer, with hands-on design, prototyping, and launch experience in medium-to-high volume production (10,000 units/yr or higher)
• Able to select circuit components for manufacturability as well as electrical function
• Able to perform detailed schematic capture in Altium or related CAD software
• Able to supervise (and occasionally perform) detailed layout of high-power electronics PCBs in Altium or related CAD software

Responsibilities

• You can create highly accurate time-domain control and thermal models of your circuits to inform software and mechanical development
• Willing to jump in and do the most critical parts of the powertrain layout yourself.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees