PVD Equipment Engineer, Solar Cells (Starlink)

The role

You will own PVD equipment used to manufacture silicon heterojunction solar cells at massive scale. You will ensure equipment performance, reliability, and uptime to support Starlink and Starship missions.

What you will do

• Install, qualify, maintain, and improve high-throughput PVD equipment
• Drive equipment reliability and uptime for large volume production
• Run experiments and analyze data to improve capacity and reduce variation
• Develop preventive and predictive maintenance strategies and spare parts programs
• Lead root cause analysis on vacuum systems, power supplies, gas delivery, and automation
• Partner with Process Engineers to implement new process requirements
• Evaluate and select next-generation high-throughput PVD tools
• Work with vendors on equipment design improvements and custom solutions
• Establish equipment performance metrics and implement statistical process control
• Ensure equipment meets cleanroom, safety, and high-reliability standards

Required qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, chemical engineering, materials science, or other engineering discipline
• 2+ years of hands-on experience owning and maintaining PVD or sputtering equipment in a high-volume semiconductor, solar manufacturing, or related environment
• Experience handling flammable, toxic, corrosive, and/or hazardous chemicals and gases safely
• Must be able to work extended hours and weekends as needed
• Ability to lift 25 lbs unassisted
• Work in cleanroom environments
• Move between multiple production areas
• Willingness to travel domestically and internationally to vendor sites (up to 20%)

Nice to have

• 5+ years of hands-on experience owning and maintaining PVD or sputtering equipment in a high-volume semiconductor or solar manufacturing environment
• Strong technical expertise in vacuum systems, sputtering cathodes, RF/DC power supplies and matching networks, gas delivery, mass flow controllers, and temperature control hardware
• Demonstrated success improving equipment uptime and reliability in a 24/7 high-volume production setting
• Experience with heterojunction (HJT) silicon solar cell manufacturing equipment
• Previous work at high-volume solar, semiconductor, or display manufacturing facilities (multi-GW or 300mm fab experience is a plus)
• Deep knowledge of PVD tool architecture and subsystems
• Experience with throttle valve PID tuning, leak rate measurements, helium leak checking, manometer adjustment, slit valve and actuator troubleshooting, etc. Experience with CDA controlled valving and
• Experience with electro-pneumatic robot and transfer module systems
• Experience with target bonding/life management, chamber clean optimization, and power supply qualification
• Experience with RF/DC generators and impedance matching systems

Before you apply

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, o

About the company

SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make human life on Mars possible. Starlink provides fast, reliable internet to those that need it most through a large satellite constellation.