Principal Electrical Engineer

OKSI • Torrance, CA

6d • $150,000 - $250,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

OKSI is developing seekers, one-way attack air vehicles, control actuation systems, and EO/IR sensor payloads on accelerated development timelines. We're seeking an electrical engineer capable of carrying a design from initial concept through flight-ready hardware with minimal process overhead. This is a hands-on ownership role, not an architecture-only position — you will own designs from concept through environmental qualification and flight test.

Requirements

• BSEE or equivalent, plus 10–20 years designing electronics for aerospace or defense systems
• Demonstrated hands-on ownership of production hardware — boards you designed that were built, qualified, and fielded
• Deep proficiency in a professional EDA tool suite (Altium, Cadence, or Mentor) for schematic and layout
• Practical command of MIL-STD-810 and MIL-STD-461, with a track record of getting hardware through qualification
• Working knowledge of IPC design and workmanship standards (IPC-2221/2222, IPC-A-610, IPC/WHMA-A-620)
• Fluency at the bench: oscilloscopes, spectrum and network analyzers, thermal cameras, power analyzers
• Must have, or be eligible to obtain, a U.S. Department of Defense Secret security clearance.
• Must be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R.

Nice To Haves

• Direct experience on missile seekers, terminal guidance hardware, or precision-guided munitions
• Autonomous UAV, loitering munition, or OWA air vehicle development
• Control actuation system or electromechanical actuator electronics
• EO/IR sensor payload electronics, gimbal control, or IMU/inertial sensor integration
• Rapid prototyping under SBIR, OTA, or other fast-turn contract vehicles
• MSEE, or demonstrated depth that makes the question irrelevant

Responsibilities

• Own mixed-signal PCB designs end to end — architecture, schematic, layout direction, fab/assembly release, bring-up, and debug
• Design detector proximity electronics for EO/IR focal plane arrays (ROIC interfaces, bias, low-noise analog front ends, TEC/thermal control)
• Develop high-speed digital interfaces (LVDS, SerDes, DDR, MIPI, CoaXPress) and SWaP-constrained power architectures (DC-DC, battery/power management, sequencing, transient protection)
• Develop motor drive and servo electronics for control actuation (BLDC/brushed drives, current/position loops, resolver/encoder feedback)
• Design and document wire harnesses and interconnect for airborne/missile environments, including connector selection (MIL-DTL-38999, micro-D, nano-D)
• Own EMI/EMC-conscious shielding, grounding, and bonding strategy across the vehicle
• Design for and qualify against MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-461, and MIL-STD-704/DO-160
• Harden assemblies for high-G/vibration/thermal extremes (staking, potting, conformal coating, derating); run worst-case analysis, thermal analysis, and FMEA
• Plan and execute HALT/HASS and qualification test campaigns
• Bring up first articles, isolate hardware/firmware/software failures, and drive root cause to closure
• Support systems integration and flight test, including travel to test ranges
• Work with fab houses and vendors on DFM/DFT, yield, and obsolescence
• Serve as senior electrical authority across concurrent rapid-development programs
• Flow requirements to electrical specs and defend them to customers
• Mentor engineers and raise the design/documentation standard across the team

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage fully paid by the employer for employees
• Three weeks of vacation to start
• Automatic company contribution to 401K – 5% of earned wages (no matching required)
• Educational assistance and professional development opportunities

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal