E-Space is seeking a
Senior RF Front-End Design Engineer to develop transmit and receive electronics for satellite communication user terminals. This is a hands-on role for an engineer who can translate system and link requirements into robust RF hardware and take designs from architecture through device-level circuit design, PCB implementation, prototype bring-up, validation, and production release.
The successful candidate will work closely with antenna, modem, baseband, firmware, power, mechanical, thermal, test, and manufacturing teams to deliver efficient and reliable user-terminal RF hardware.
On-site in Arlington, Texas. Occasional travel may be required.
What you will do:- Own RF front-end designs from system requirements and architecture through schematic capture, PCB layout, prototype bring-up, verification, and production release.
- Develop transmit and receive chains using power amplifiers, low-noise amplifiers, filters, duplexers, diplexers, switches, couplers, attenuators, mixers, synthesizers, transceivers, and frequency-conversion devices.
- Translate link-budget requirements into RF specifications for output power, sensitivity, noise figure, gain, linearity, dynamic range, bandwidth, EVM, adjacent-channel performance, phase noise, spurious emissions, and efficiency.
- Perform cascaded RF analyses covering gain, noise figure, sensitivity, P1dB, IP3, dynamic range, compression, EVM, phase noise, spurious performance, and link margin.
- Design device-level RF circuits, impedance-matching networks, bias networks, stability networks, power detectors, and protection circuits.
- Select RF components based on electrical performance, power consumption, thermal behavior, size, availability, cost, manufacturability, and reliability.
- Simulate RF circuits using Keysight ADS, Cadence AWR, or equivalent circuit and electromagnetic simulation tools.
- Define and review RF PCB stackups, controlled-impedance transmission lines, grounding, shielding, component placement, isolation, and critical RF routing.
- Develop architectures supporting TDD, FDD, or simultaneous transmit and receive, as required.
- Analyze transmitter leakage, receiver desensitization, harmonics, intermodulation, oscillator leakage, switching noise, and digital interference.
- Integrate the RF front end with the antenna, modem, baseband processor, ADC/DAC, firmware, power system, enclosure, and thermal solution.
- Plan and perform RF measurements using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, power meters, noise-figure analyzers, oscilloscopes, and communication signal analyzers.
- Measure and optimize gain, noise figure, sensitivity, output power, EVM, ACPR or ACLR, harmonics, spurious emissions, stability, and efficiency.
- Correlate simulations with measured results, identify root causes of discrepancies, and drive corrective actions.
- Support environmental testing for user-terminal conditions, including temperature cycling, vibration, shock, humidity, and outdoor operation.
- Develop production calibration, test limits, automated test methods, and manufacturing verification strategies.
- Document requirements, analyses, schematics, design decisions, test procedures, results, and technical risks.
- Mentor engineers and technicians and help establish repeatable RF design and validation practices.
Required qualifications:- Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or a related field.
- Typically 7 or more years of hands-on RF or microwave hardware design experience.
- Demonstrated experience designing RF front-end hardware from requirements through production release.
- Strong understanding of transmit and receive architectures, impedance matching, gain, noise figure, linearity, stability, dynamic range, and RF filtering.
- Hands-on experience with RF circuit simulation tools such as Keysight ADS, Cadence AWR, or equivalent.
- Experience with schematic capture, RF PCB layout review, prototype bring-up, debugging, and characterization.
- Experience designing with PAs, LNAs, filters, switches, mixers, synthesizers, transceivers, or related RF components.
- Hands-on experience using VNAs, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, power meters, and other RF laboratory equipment.
- Ability to correlate simulated and measured results and resolve RF performance problems systematically.
- Strong technical communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
- Strong knowledge and understanding of satellite communication systems, with the ability to derive detailed technical requirements from high-level objectives and system direction.
Preferred qualifications:- Experience with satellite communication terminals, cellular devices, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GNSS, IoT radios, or other wireless products.
- Experience with modem-to-antenna RF architectures and complete wireless signal chains.
- Experience optimizing PA performance for output power, efficiency, EVM, linearity, and adjacent-channel emissions.
- Experience optimizing receiver sensitivity while managing filter loss, LNA gain, interference, and ADC dynamic range.
- Familiarity with TDD/FDD isolation, receiver desensitization, coexistence, self-interference, and transmitter-noise requirements.
- Experience with RF shielding, EMI/EMC, grounding, power-supply noise, and digital-interface interference.
- Experience developing production calibration and automated RF test methods.
- Familiarity with outdoor-terminal regulatory, environmental, reliability, and manufacturability requirements.
- Experience supporting medium- or high-volume production.
- Phased-array antenna/RFFE experience is beneficial.
Additional RequirementsThis is a fast-paced, high-impact environment - flexibility to occasionally work extended hours or weekends during critical periods is expected.
$160,000 - $195,000 a year
This is a full time, exempt position, based out of our Arlington, TX facility. The target base pay for this position is $160,000 - $195,000 annually. The total compensation packaged will be determined by various factors such as your relevant job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
We are redefining how satellites are designed, manufactured and used-so we're looking for candidates with passion, deep knowledge and direct experience on LEO satellite component development, design and in-orbit activities. If that's your experience - then we'll be immediately wow-ed.
E-Space is not currently able to provide employment sponsorship for candidates who do not hold work authorization for the location of this role.
