Radar Frequency (RF) Engineers

SAIC•Denver, CO

6h•Onsite

About The Position

SAIC is seeking a Radio Frequency (RF) Engineer Subject Matter Expert to join its Space and Intelligence Business Group in Denver, Colorado. The position supports a joint Intelligence Community and Department of Defense program, providing specialized space and counter-space engineering, scientific, and analytical services. The successful candidate will work in a collaborative team of U.S. Government civilians and contractors to solve applied technical problems and develop solutions for space-related capabilities and threats. The role applies expert knowledge of space systems RF engineering and operations, space threats and protection, radiometry or radioastronomy, and digital signal processing. Work includes analyzing RF communications between satellites and ground stations, modeling and assessing signal and transmission parameters, performing link-budget and probability-of-detection analyses, and evaluating the detectability of low-power signals in high-noise environments. The position also supports signal collection and analysis in laboratory and real-world settings, contributes to recommendations on satellite designs and concepts of operations, and provides technical assessments to program managers and satellite owner/operators. The engineer will work with specialized hardware and software operating under Linux and will engage with program offices, contractors, government counterparts, and other technical stakeholders. The position qualifies for enhanced benefits.

Requirements

Minimum bachelor's degree in engineering, physics, or mathematics.
At least 18 years of direct experience with RF signal processing and/or satellite communication systems.
Proven analytic problem-solving experience involving exploitation of RF data from space objects, including familiarity with RF data products and signal-processing techniques.
Knowledge and experience with the performance of specialized RF communications signals between satellites and ground stations.
Strong written and verbal communication skills, including communicating technical concepts, results, and summaries to customers and stakeholders with diverse technical backgrounds.
Demonstrated ability to work effectively individually and in groups, proactively initiate work, and operate in dynamic and incompletely defined environments.
Fluency with specialized software tools or programming languages relevant to space-system analyses, such as MATLAB, Python, C++, Fortran, and Microsoft Excel.
Extensive experience with IC and/or DoD satellite systems in SCI or SAP environments.
Domain-expert knowledge and experience in space systems RF engineering, operations, space threats and protection, radiometry or radioastronomy, and digital signal processing.
Deep experience with space RF signals, RF payload operations, or signal extraction and processing.

Nice To Haves

Master’s or doctorate degree in RF engineering, signal processing, physics, electrical engineering, or mathematics.
Experience in a satellite development factory or space-system program office, particularly with Geosynchronous Equatorial Orbit systems.
Experience with satellite communications systems or analytic problem-solving relating to RF communication-system performance, especially satellite systems.
Experience with signal-processing methods and algorithms, signal modulation and encoding schemes, direct-sequence spread-spectrum signal analysis, radiometry, and extraction or enhancement of low-power signals from a noise background.

Responsibilities

Conduct specialized technical studies of RF systems, targets, and data products, providing assessments and actionable solutions to program managers or satellite owner/operators.
Lead and participate in physics-based modeling, simulation, analysis, and technical trades.
Analyze the performance of specialized RF communications signals between satellites and ground stations using advanced signal-processing techniques.
Maintain and use specialized hardware and software for detecting low-power signals in high-noise environments under Linux.
Model and assess RF transmission and reception parameters, including antenna patterns, signal-to-noise ratios, noise uncertainty, signal strength, and bit error rates, for link-budget and probability-of-detection analyses.
Participate in collecting and analyzing test and experimental signals in laboratory and real-world environments, serving as lead when requested.
Assess the risk of detecting specific low-power signals in high-noise environments from threat and non-threat systems.
Develop detailed understanding of satellite systems, designs, operations, and classifications to make design or Concepts of Operations recommendations.
Maintain in-depth knowledge of U.S. and foreign Space Domain Awareness capabilities and counter-space threats, especially RF systems.
Represent the customer in Government and contractor meetings and attend technical and programmatic reviews to provide recommendations and risk assessments.
Frequently interact with program managers, SETAs, FFRDCs, and external stakeholders.
Develop productive relationships with Program Office, prime and subcontractor counterparts, functional IC or DoD counterparts, and other subject matter experts.