Senior RF Test Engineer

Vast is looking for a Senior RF Test Engineer, reporting to the Manager, RF Test  Engineering, to support the development of the systems that will be required for the design and build of human-rated space stations.

This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location.

Responsibilities:

Work closely with RF and antenna engineers to design and build state of the art automated test systems for component level and vehicle level applications.

Test automation software development for test instruments, data processing, test sequencing, and reporting.

Define RF test system requirements and specifications.

Support spacecraft RF test activities such as OTA, EMI/EMC, antenna pattern measurement, and system checkouts.

Hands on environmental test for RF hardware (thermal cycling, TVAC, random vibration, shock, EMI/EMC, humidity, etc) as well as supporting spacecraft integration tests in cleanroom facilities.

Minimum Qualifications:

Bachelor's Degree in ECE, EE, Physics, or related STEM discipline.

2+ years in an RF design and/or test role.

Experience with RF test equipment such as Spectrum Analyzers, Vector Network Analyzers, Signal Generators, Communications Test Systems, Power Meters, etc.

Experience with software development: Python, Matlab, C/C++, etc.

Preferred Skills & Experience:

Master’s Degree in ECE, EE, Physics, or related stem discipline.

Mission oriented mindset with a strong desire for team success.

Comfortable communicating deeply technical topics to a wide variety of audiences.

Familiarity with IP networking and ethernet connected test instruments.

Experience with serial communication protocols such as CAN, SPI, and I2C, RS-422/485.

Understanding of RF link budgets, thermal noise, noise figure, EVM, P1dB, Spurs, and Rx sensitivity.

Familiarity with antenna testing concepts such as gain, directivity, EIRP, and antenna patterns.

Understanding of RF schematics and RF electronics manufacturing.

Experience with GNU Radio and software-defined radios (SDRs) and GPS receivers.

Understanding of RF modulation schemes such as BPSK, QPSK, GMSK, APSK, TDMA, FDMA, etc.

Experience processing large frequency and time-domain sets of data

Familiarity with space rated avionics test standards such as SMC-S-016, GSFC-STD-7000, MIL-STD-461, etc.

Additional Requirements:

Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones.

Pay Range:

RF Test Engineer: $120,054 - $171,108

Senior RF Test Engineer: $147,600 - $209,520

Pay Range: California

$120,054—$209,520 USD