Optical Designer and Analyst

Location: This role will be onsite in our Broomfield, Colorado office. 
Travel: Up to 5%
Job ID:  554

About Skyloom 

Skyloom, an IonQ company, is a telecommunications company founded with the mission to develop, deploy, and operate one of the fundamental pieces of tomorrow's space communication infrastructure to provide data transport services on a planetary scale. If you have a strong sense of purpose, focus, urgency, and willingness to compete, or if working on space lasers excites you, join our team to develop the future generation of space communication technology.

What Makes Skyloom Unique?    

Skyloom is building the orbital infrastructure for the next renaissance in global connectivity. As Earth’s first space-based telecommunications company, we deliver fiberless, planetary-scale data transport that dramatically increases bandwidth, availability, and resiliency—while reducing latency and total cost of operations.

Our proprietary optical technology enables secure, ultra-high-capacity connections across our end-to-end, multi-orbit network or within your own infrastructure, unlocking a new standard for global communications.

The Role

The Optical Designer and Analyst will be responsible for designing, analyzing, and optimizing optical systems for space-based communication technologies. This role requires hands-on experience with optical design software, a strong background in optics, and the ability to collaborate across disciplines to deliver optical designs that are both innovative and capable of cost-effective mass production.

Responsibilities 

• Lead the full lifecycle of optical systems, including conceptualization, simulation, detailed design, and prototyping. Focus areas include free-space optical communication systems and high-speed laser applications.
• Conduct in-depth analysis using optical design software to optimize system performance, focusing on aspects such as manufacturing and alignment tolerances, wavefront error, radiometric analysis, free-space far-field propagation and fiber coupling efficiency.
• Collaborate with mechanical, electrical, software and control engineering teams to ensure seamless integration of optical subsystems into spacecraft or ground-based platforms.
• Develop and implement optomechanical design and analysis strategies to validate design requirements, including Structural-Thermal-Optical Performance analysis to ensure robustness for space environments.
• Write and maintain technical documentation on designs, analyses, and test procedures. Mentor and transfer knowledge to other team members and cross-functional peers.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Optics, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications Engineering, Physics, or a related technical field.
• Proven experience in optical system design, particularly for space-based or high-precision optical instruments.
• Extensive experience with optical design software (e.g., ZEMAX) and mechanical design tools (e.g., SolidWorks, Siemens NX).
• To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Skyloom employees must be a U.S. citizen, lawful U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State and/or the U.S. Department of Commerce, as applicable. Learn more about ITAR here.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with optical design in the context of space-flight systems or astronomy is highly desirable.
• Experience working in a cleanroom environment (ISO 5 to ISO 8).
• Spanish speaking is a plus.

Compensation 

The approximate base salary range for this position is $115,000 - $130,000. The total compensation package includes base, bonus, equity, and a range of benefit options found on our career site.  

Compensation will vary based on individual factors such as education, qualifications and experience of the final candidate(s), specific office location and calibration against relevant market data and internal team equity.  Posted base salary figures are subject to change as new market data becomes available. 

Benefits/Perks 

• In addition to an opportunity to take part in an innovative, collaborative and fast-growing business with a highly motivated and skilled team, we also take pride in taking care of our employees. Here are just a few ways that we show our appreciation:
  • We provide extensive medical coverage, including strong vision and dental plans, flexible spending accounts, and additional supplemental health options.
  • Paid Time Off Policy
  • 401(k) Plan 
  • Mental Health Resources
  • Furry friends? We’ve got you covered with with pet insurance options 
  • Legal insurance options also available

Equal Opportunity Statement 

At IonQ, we believe in fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all, and we strive to identify and eliminate barriers. We empower employees to thrive by fostering a culture of autonomy, productivity, and respect. We are dedicated to creating an environment where individuals can feel welcomed, respected, supported, and valued.  
  
We are committed to equity and justice. We welcome different voices and viewpoints and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, ancestry, physical and/or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by law. We are proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.