We are seeking a Principal Engineer - Cell Design & Mechanical Architecture to lead the design and development of our next-generation microbattery cells.
This is a highly hands-on technical leadership role for an engineer who can translate cell requirements into cell architecture, mechanical design, CAD models, mask sets, stacking concepts, and manufacturable designs. The ideal candidate understands both the design requirements and the manufacturing processes well enough to make intelligent design-for-manufacturing decisions.
Role Overview
The Principal Engineer will be the technical owner for cell architecture, mechanical design, CAD, mask-set design, and stacking architecture.
The role will work closely with materials, thin-film process engineering, manufacturing, equipment engineering, and product development to ensure that cell designs are not only technically sound but also manufacturable, scalable, and capable of achieving the required performance and yield.
The ideal candidate is a hands-on engineer who enjoys solving multidisciplinary problems and can move from concept 12 CAD 12 mask design 12 prototype 12 assembly 12 testing 12 design iteration.
Key Responsibilities:
Cell Architecture & Mechanical Design
- Lead the mechanical and structural design of solid-state microbattery cells and multilayer cell architectures.
- Develop multiple cell design concepts and evaluate trade-offs between energy density, performance, manufacturability, reliability, yield, and cost.
- Define cell dimensions, layer structures, interfaces, tolerances, alignment requirements, and mechanical constraints.
- Develop detailed 3D CAD models, drawings, assemblies, and engineering specifications.
- Apply GD&T and design-for-manufacturing principles to precision microbattery components and assemblies.
- Analyze mechanical stresses, dimensional variation, thermal expansion, layer interfaces, and other factors affecting cell reliability.
- Establish design rules and standards for future cell generations.
Mask-Set & Pattern Design
- Own mask-set design and layout development for microbattery fabrication.
- Translate cell architecture into mask layouts and manufacturing patterns.
- Define critical dimensions, alignment tolerances, registration requirements, and design constraints.
- Collaborate with internal and external mask/fabrication partners.
- Review mask designs for manufacturability and process compatibility.
- Drive design iterations based on process capability, yield, and cell performance.
Stacking & Assembly Architecture
- Develop multilayer stacking concepts and assembly strategies.
- Define layer sequence, alignment strategy, interfaces, registration requirements, and mechanical constraints.
- Work closely with process engineering to develop robust stacking processes.
- Identify and resolve defects associated with misalignment, layer damage, particles, mechanical stress, and interface failures.
- Develop design features that improve assembly yield and process robustness.
Design-for-Manufacturing
- Work closely with process engineers to ensure cell designs are compatible with sputtering, patterning, cutting, stacking, and assembly processes.
- Define design tolerances based on actual process capability.
- Identify design changes that improve manufacturing yield and repeatability.
- Participate in process capability studies and design-of-experiment activities.
- Establish feedback loops between manufacturing data and cell design.
Prototype & Validation
- Lead engineering builds and prototype cell design iterations.
- Analyze cell performance and failure modes and translate findings into design improvements.
- Work with characterization and electrochemical teams to correlate cell design with performance.
- Develop design verification plans and acceptance criteria.
- Support root-cause analysis of mechanical and cell-level failures.
Technical Leadership
- Serve as the technical authority for cell architecture and mechanical design.
- Establish engineering standards, design methodologies, and design-review processes.
- Mentor engineers and technicians working on cell design and assembly.
- Lead cross-functional technical reviews and design decisions.
- Communicate technical recommendations, risks, and tradeoffs to engineering leadership.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Manufacturing Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
- 8+ years of relevant engineering experience.
- Strong experience with 3D CAD and mechanical design.
- Demonstrated experience with precision mechanical design, tolerancing, and GD&T.
- Experience with mask-set design, photolithography layouts, microfabrication, MEMS, semiconductor devices, thin-film batteries, or similar technologies.
- Experience designing multilayer structures, precision assemblies, or stacked devices.
- Strong understanding of design-for-manufacturing principles.
- Experience taking designs from concept through prototype and engineering validation.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Ability to work hands-on in a laboratory/manufacturing environment.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with solid-state batteries, thin-film batteries, microbatteries, MEMS, semiconductor processing, or advanced energy-storage technologies.
- Experience with sputtered thin films and vacuum processing.
- Experience with photolithography, etching, laser patterning, or semiconductor fabrication.
- Experience with multilayer stacking and precision alignment.
- Familiarity with thin-film characterization and failure analysis.
- Experience working in a startup or rapidly changing R&D environment.
Key Attributes
- Excellent mechanical and architectural design intuition.
- Strong attention to dimensional detail and manufacturability.
- Comfortable developing multiple design options rather than locking into the first concept.
- Hands-on and willing to work directly with prototypes and manufacturing processes.
- Data-driven and experimentally oriented.
- Strong cross-functional communication.
- Able to operate independently and provide technical leadership without requiring extensive direction.
Salary Range:
$200,000-$240,000
The base salary range is specific to California. The salary of the final candidate selected for this role will be determined by a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, internal equity, experience, education, specialty, and training
