Principal Optics Engineer

Thales Defense & Security, Inc. • Billerica, MA

2d • $146,151 - $186,748 • Hybrid

About The Position

Thales Defense & Security, Inc. (TDSI) is seeking a Principal Optics Engineer for their Billerica, MA office. TDSI has a 60+ year history serving domestic and international defense domains and is a U.S. company with over 1,000 employees. They specialize in communication, visualization, signal intelligence/electronic warfare, and sensor/sonar capabilities, with key technologies including tactical handheld radios, expeditionary satellite terminals, helmet-mounted displays, optics and target recognition capability, advanced radars, undersea sensing and missile systems. The Principal Optics Engineer will be responsible for understanding the Augmented Reality HMD marketspace, developing product/development requirements, proposing R&D efforts, and providing technical support on proposals and customer interactions. This role involves designing and developing optical components for head-mounted displays, testing performance, analyzing results, and debugging issues. The engineer will operate with a high degree of autonomy, manage vendors, and collaborate with various internal disciplines. Some domestic and international travel is expected.

Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Bachelor’s in engineering or equivalent technology field
• 8+ years’ experience in hands on engineering role; with at least 6 dedicated to Optics
• Excellent organizational skills and work ethic
• Knowledge of software development lifecycle
• Effective oral and written communication skills and the ability to manage multiple projects

Nice To Haves

• master’s or PhD preferred
• Experience with motion tracking integration into augmented reality devices (expertise preferred)

Responsibilities

• Understand the Augmented Reality HMD marketspace, its requirements and customer needs
• Develop / maintain a vast network of contacts at vendors, customers, and industry working groups
• Attend and participate as subject matter expert in relevant conferences and symposia
• Understand the physics and math of optics and displays
• Develop product/development requirements – what is possible, what is manufacturable, how to bend physics to our will, and how much of that can we do now?
• Propose R&D efforts, how to productize the resulting technologies, and the intervening set of tasks
• Provide technical support and expertise on proposals, bid efforts and customer interactions
• Interact with and impress customers, and vendor counterparts at very technical level
• Manage vendors to a successful conclusion, including providing milestones for evaluating next direction, and cutting bait if such evaluation finds no promising direction
• Design and develop optical components of head mounted displays (waveguide, projector, intervening optics)- potentially identifying COTS while overseeing adaption effort
• Test performance of optical components (especially waveguides) in the lab
• Analyze performance of optical components: provide and defend first order (oversimplified) calculations with stated assumptions to recommend whether a technical approach is worth further investigation (for instance in the lab)
• Debug problems with our current displays
• Operate without close supervision, which probably means turning an open-ended problem into a course of action and then following it to an actionable conclusion
• Perform as an integral member of the HMD team interacting on a regular basis with inter/intra-company disciplines including engineering, contracts, programs management, business development, and manufacturing
• Set the standards that embody the TDSI Core Value and Thales Leadership Model

Benefits

• Competitive Salary
• Yearly Incentive Compensation Plan
• Medical insurance for self and eligible family members
• Generous 401(k) program- up to 7% company contribution and 100% immediate vesting
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Paid wellness, vacation, and holiday leave
• Paid maternity, paternity, and parental leave
• 9/80 Work Schedule (every other Friday off)
• Hybrid working environment

What This Job Offers

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