Power Electronics - Thermal Engineer Senior Staff

The role

This senior staff thermal engineer will lead thermal analysis and design for unmanned aerial vehicle avionics, including custom power electronics. The role also covers mentoring engineers and leading cross-functional design work.

What you will do

• Own thermal analysis and design for UAV avionics, including custom power electronics
• Develop and validate heat transfer and fluid flow models using hand calculations and CFD tools such as FloEFD
• Provide technical leadership in trade studies, system architecture decisions, and risk assessments
• Lead cross-functional teams designing power electronic circuits and environmental enclosures
• Set design requirements that affect part selection, board layout, and materials
• Drive test planning, instrumentation, and data analysis to correlate models with test results
• Mentor junior engineers and guide cross-disciplinary teams in thermal and fluid fundamentals
• Communicate findings through executive briefings, design reviews, and written reports
• Identify risks, propose solutions, and influence electrical and PCBA design direction

Required qualifications

• B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related discipline
• Minimum 7 years of professional experience in avionics or electronics thermal engineering
• Strong expertise in heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation) and fluid mechanics
• Deep understanding of active and passive cooling and their integration at component and system level
• Deep understanding of TIMs, spreaders, heat sinks, vapor chambers, heat pipes, and fans
• Proficiency with thermal analysis and CFD tools such as ANSYS Icepak, FloEFD, or STAR-CCM+
• Proficiency with CAD tools such as NX, SolidWorks, or similar
• Demonstrated first-principles reasoning on complex engineering problems
• Strong written and verbal communication, including leading technical discussions and presenting to stakeholders
• Ability to learn new tools and processes quickly in a fast-paced startup environment

Nice to have

• Ability to obtain an S//SAR level security clearance

Benefits

• Bonus
• Equity
• Benefits for full-time regular employees
• Temporary benefits package after 60 days for temporary employees

Before you apply

• Offers are contingent on a cleared background check and possible reference check
• Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits

About the company

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company that builds intelligent systems to protect service members and civilians. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation technologies.