Senior Firmware Engineer

Vector Atomic•Pleasanton, CA

2d•Onsite

About The Position

IonQ, Inc. is a leading quantum company focused on solving complex problems with its quantum computers. Vector Atomic, an IonQ company, is developing quantum technology for various applications and is seeking a skilled Senior Firmware Engineer to join their team. This role involves designing, implementing, and verifying embedded software for ST microcontrollers and developing low-level control algorithms for precision measurement instruments. The engineer will work closely with hardware engineers throughout the product development lifecycle.

Requirements

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or Computer Science with substantial embedded systems coursework, lab, or internship experience; other technical degrees considered with 5+ years of directly relevant experience.
Demonstrated ability to write production-quality C/C++ code for small embedded processors.
Proficiency writing interrupt service routines, peripheral drivers, and multi-threaded firmware for embedded MCUs using RTOSs and/or bare-metal environments.
Experience interfacing with external devices via TCP, UDP, UART, SPI, I2C, or similar protocols.
Familiarity with fixed-point arithmetic and digital filter design for embedded applications.
Experience developing scripts in Python, Perl, or similar languages.
Hands-on experience using test and measurement equipment (oscilloscopes, function generators, voltmeters) to validate firmware performance.
Proven ability to isolate and resolve bugs using debuggers and simulation tools.
Comfortable working in a laboratory environment.
Must be a U.S. citizen (born or naturalized), lawful U.S. permanent resident (green card holder), or certain categories of refugees and asylees to comply with U.S. export control laws.

Nice To Haves

Experience designing and implementing control algorithms such as PID controllers.
Proficiency in assembly language programming for embedded targets.
Experience implementing lightweight Ethernet stacks (e.g., lwIP) on small embedded systems.
Background working with SoC or FPGA devices.

Responsibilities

Collaborate with a cross-functional team of physicists, electronics engineers, and firmware engineers to design and deliver next-generation quantum instruments.
Write and verify embedded firmware for ST microcontrollers, including COTS devices and MCUs integrated into custom ASICs.
Implement control algorithms critical to the operation of high-precision sensing instruments.
Develop peripheral drivers for mixed-signal and other devices, working directly from electronic schematics.
Partner with hardware engineers to support board testing and hardware bring-up activities.
Contribute to continuous process improvement by authoring task tickets in GitHub and participating in code reviews, project reviews, and retrospectives.
Clearly document and communicate your work through written and verbal channels with coworkers and collaborators.