Senior RF Electrical Engineer, Amplifiers (Prism)

The role

You will own Ka-band high power amplifier design for Prism, a 2.4-meter parabolic antenna. You will take amplifiers from architecture through prototype, characterization, and production.

What you will do

• Design Ka-band high power amplifiers from line-up and architecture through schematic, layout, and hardware bring-up
• Develop power combining approaches that scale output power while protecting efficiency, linearity, and reliability
• Build electromagnetic and circuit simulation models to design and evaluate performance before hardware
• Design supporting circuitry, including bias and sequencing, power conditioning, protection, monitoring, and digital control interfaces
• Own thermal and packaging considerations for high-dissipation RF hardware
• Characterize amplifier performance and troubleshoot integrated transmit chain performance
• Drive designs through reliability testing and into production, including test definition and manufacturing support
• Support integration and field troubleshooting of deployed Prism units

Required qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or a related engineering discipline
• 5+ years of RF hardware design experience
• Hands-on experience designing and building power amplifiers at microwave or millimeter-wave frequencies (Ku-band or higher)
• Experience taking RF hardware from design through bring-up, characterization, and debug in the lab
• Proficiency with RF and EM simulation tools (such as Keysight ADS, Cadence AWR, Ansys HFSS, or CST)
• Comfort with RF test equipment, including network analyzers, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, and power meters

Nice to have

• Master's degree or PhD in electrical engineering with a focus on RF or microwave design
• Ka-band solid state power amplifier (SSPA) or block upconverter (BUC) design for satellite communications
• GaN MMIC-based amplifier design, including device selection, matching, stability analysis, and bias networks
• Power combiner design, including waveguide, spatial, or planar approaches
• Waveguide component and transition design, including waveguide-to-microstrip transitions, rotary joints, and feeds
• Thermal management and packaging for high power RF electronics
• Linearity and modulated signal performance (IMD, ACPR, EVM, spectral regrowth), including linearization techniques
• Satcom transmit compliance, including emission masks and regulatory limits
• Design for manufacturing, production test development, and reliability qualification

Before you apply

• To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., pro

About the company

Northwood is a modern space infrastructure company bringing the benefits of space to the masses through advanced communications technology. They design, build, and rapidly deploy scalable systems that power the next generation of space missions.