Principal/Sr. Principal RF Microwave/Mixed Signal Design Engineer

Northrop Grumman • Baltimore, MD

6d • $108,800 - $203,600 • Onsite

About The Position

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems is hiring a Principal or Senior Principal RF Microwave/Mixed Signal Design Engineer for its Linthicum, Maryland team. This full-time, onsite role supports the architecture, design, verification, and sustainment of RF microwave and mixed-signal hardware for electronic sensor products used on maritime, ground, airborne, and space platforms. The position offers a 9/80 work schedule and may include relocation assistance. The role is contingent on program/task award and requires the ability to obtain an Interim U.S. Government Secret clearance before starting.

The engineer will design and verify RF assemblies and subsystems, including antenna-system building blocks and AESA products, using industry modeling and simulation tools. Responsibilities also span test planning, hardware prototyping and troubleshooting, antenna measurements, requirements development, RF budgeting, supplier and cross-functional collaboration, production support, and product lifecycle engineering. The requisition may be filled at either the Principal Engineer (T03) or Senior Principal Engineer (T04) level, depending on qualifications.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related STEM field and 5 years of RF/microwave experience, or a master's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related STEM field and 3 years of RF/microwave experience, or a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering or a related STEM field for the Principal Engineer level.
• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related STEM field and 8 years of RF/microwave experience, or a master's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related STEM field and 6 years of RF/microwave experience, or a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering or a related STEM field and 3 years of RF/microwave experience for the Senior Principal Engineer level.
• Demonstrated knowledge of electrical engineering design software and equipment.
• Experience working in a collaborative, cross-functional team environment.
• U.S. citizenship.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government Secret clearance; an active Interim Secret clearance is required before starting.

Nice To Haves

• Graduate degree concentration in RF/Microwave Engineering or Computational Electromagnetics.
• Experience designing, implementing, installing, and maintaining electrical systems.
• Direct experience designing or testing AESA/phased-array, radar, SIGINT, or SATCOM products.
• Experience with DoD radar electronic designs through all product lifecycle phases, from concept through production support.
• Knowledge of integrated-circuit packaging techniques, including chip-and-wire, QFN, flip-chip, and interposers.
• Electronic troubleshooting at component and assembly levels.
• Ability to write code for complex data reduction and analysis using MATLAB or Python/C++/C#.
• Technical team leadership experience, with or without Cost Account Management experience.
• Current, active U.S. Government Secret clearance or higher.

Responsibilities

• Design, model, and verify RF and mixed-signal assemblies such as apertures, radomes, circulators/isolators, transmit/receive modules and switches, interposers, filters, RF manifolds/splitters, backplanes, and beamformers.
• Design, model, and verify RF and mixed-signal subsystems, including AESA and other RF subsystem products used in electronic sensor systems such as radar.
• Use industry tools to model and simulate RF and mixed-signal performance.
• Create RF and mixed-signal hardware test plans and test specifications.
• Follow RF and mixed-signal hardware through production, troubleshoot engineering issues, and provide sustainment engineering.
• Prototype RF and mixed-signal hardware using standard RF lab equipment.
• Conduct antenna measurements using anechoic chambers and antenna-range test equipment.
• Derive and trade requirements from the antenna subsystem level down to component levels.
• Manage RF budgets, frequency planning, and common assembly-level interfaces.
• Predict assembly-level performance through material, component, and packaging selections; RF chain analysis; electromagnetic simulation; data collection and analysis; and other modeling techniques.
• Collaborate with Mechanical, Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, and Test Design functions.
• Use manufacturing capabilities for prototyping through full-rate production, from foundry and microelectronic packaging through printed circuit board fabrication, assembly, and subsystem integration and test.
• Work with external suppliers, including foundries, printed circuit board fabricators and assemblers, component manufacturers, and material fabricators.
• Support products throughout their lifecycle.

Benefits

• Health plan and health insurance coverage.
• Savings plan.
• Paid time off for vacation and/or personal business.
• Company-paid holidays.
• Education assistance.
• Training and development.
• 9/80 work schedule where available.
• Life and disability insurance.
• Potential eligibility for overtime, shift differential, and discretionary bonus, depending on the position.

What This Job Offers

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