Staff Electrical Engineer
About The Position
Dash 2 Dynamics (D2), an incubation company of Red Cell Partners, is developing advanced communications systems that integrate plasma physics, radio-frequency engineering, and novel antenna architectures. The systems are intended to enable smaller, wideband, and more resilient communications in demanding and contested RF environments, progressing from laboratory research through prototyping, qualification, and deployment. The Staff Electrical Engineer will lead mixed-signal electrical design for electronics supporting D2’s plasma-enhanced antenna and communications systems. The role owns designs from schematic capture through PCB layout, particularly digital, control, sensing, and power circuitry around the RF chain. The engineer will also help define hardware build strategies and work closely with the RF subject matter expert to integrate, bring up, and test boards, verify performance, and compare measured system behavior with design intent. As the senior electrical contributor on a small, multidisciplinary team, this engineer will set technical direction, lead design reviews, mentor engineers, and work with mechanical, software, and systems engineers as well as external partners. The role covers prototyping, troubleshooting, integration, design verification, and the transition of hardware toward qualification and repeatable production.
Requirements
- Degree in Electrical Engineering or a closely related field, or an equivalent combination of education, training, and directly relevant experience.
- Typically 6–10+ years of relevant engineering work demonstrating technical ownership of complex, cross-disciplinary mixed-signal systems from architecture and interface trade-offs through schematic capture, layout, bring-up, integration, and verification.
- Expertise designing, laying out, building, and debugging printed circuit boards.
- Proficiency with a professional schematic and PCB design environment such as Altium Designer, KiCad, or OrCAD.
- Strong fundamentals in mixed-signal and digital design, including microcontroller or FPGA interfaces, data converters, serial buses, power electronics, controls, instrumentation, signal integrity, and power integrity.
- Hands-on proficiency with oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, signal generators, power supplies, electronic loads, probes, and safe laboratory practices.
- Ability to lead design reviews, mentor engineers, communicate technical risk, and make sound decisions with incomplete information.
- Ability to meet requirements associated with work on U.S. government and national-security programs.
Nice To Haves
- Familiarity with RF power amplifiers, impedance matching, high-voltage supplies, pulsed-power circuits, plasma systems, or electrically small antennas.
- Experience with FPGA or embedded firmware development, or close collaboration with firmware engineers on hardware/software bring-up.
- Familiarity with electromagnetic compatibility practices and standards such as MIL-STD-461.
- Experience with embedded control, data acquisition, automation scripts, or software-defined radio interfaces.
- Experience supporting design verification, environmental qualification, SBIR/STTR programs, or defense product development.
- Active U.S. security clearance or eligibility to obtain one.
Responsibilities
- Architect the mixed-signal electrical backbone, including digital control, embedded interfaces, sensing, data conversion, and power.
- Lead electrical design reviews, mentor engineers, and establish scalable boundaries between digital and RF systems in partnership with the RF subject matter expert.
- Design microcontroller- and FPGA-based control, data converters, precision sensing, and drive and bias circuitry for plasma elements.
- Own circuit designs from schematic capture through PCB layout, accounting for signal and power integrity, thermal margin, testability, noise coupling, EMI, arcing, parasitics, and transient stress.
- Bring up and debug prototypes using laboratory instruments and automated data capture, investigating root causes across electrical, plasma, and electromechanical behavior.
- Plan and execute integration and test campaigns to reduce technical risks and correlate circuit models and bench data with plasma, thermal, and RF performance.
- Help define fabrication and assembly approaches, prototype build sequencing, design verification, and configuration control.
- Work with mechanical, software, and systems engineers and with PCB, component, and test partners to support EMC design and defense qualification toward repeatable production.
- Communicate technical risks and make sound engineering decisions with incomplete information.
Benefits
- Career-track opportunity with potential for rapid advancement based on strong performance as the firm grows.
- 100% employer-paid comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage for the employee and family.
- Paid maternity and paternity leave for 14 weeks at normal pay.
- Unlimited PTO, with management approval.
- Opportunities for professional development and continued learning.
- Optional 401K, FSA, and equity incentives.
- Mental health benefits through Tara Mind.
- Cost-effective GLP-1 solutions through Crux.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
