Optomechanical Engineer - R&D
Who We Are
Aurelius Systems is a VC-backed defense tech startup building autonomous, edge-deployed robotics systems using directed energy for counter-UAS.
We build laser weapons to shoot down drones.
We're a small team of ~10 engineers, former US military operators, and subject matter experts scaling America's directed energy dominance. The first cost effective, reliable and robust laser weapon system.
Our namesake isn't an accident. Marcus Aurelius wrote about doing the work in front of you, every day, without excuses. Henry Ford didn't wait for permission to reinvent manufacturing. That's how we operate; small team, unreasonable output, no hiding behind the unachievable.
In addition to our San Francisco lab/office, we opened our Detroit manufacturing hub and we field test weekly on our own 400-acre private range.
If you are the kind of engineer who'd rather see your work on a range than in a lab, read on.
The Role & Your Impact
You'll own the optical subsystem that gets our laser from the source to the target.
That means designing, building, and validating the precision hardware and optical components from lenses, mirrors, beam shaping optics, mounts, to housings. You that make a multi-kilowatt laser system work in the field, not just in a lab. You will be taking designs from Zemax to hardware, aligning them on the bench, and standing behind them when they go downrange.
This role sits at the intersection of optics and mechanical engineering. You'll work directly alongside our hardware team on source integration and our mechanical and electrical teams on system level packaging. When the beam quality degrades at a range test, you're the one who knows why and has a solution before the day is over.
What You'll Own
Design and build precision optical assemblies for a high-power directed energy system — beam expanders, fold mirrors, focusing optics, and delivery components
Execute opto-mechanical tolerance analysis and use Zemax to validate designs before committing to hardware
Select, specify, and qualify optical components (lenses, mirrors, coatings, windows) for high-power CW laser operation
Design and fabricate ruggedized opto-mechanical mounts and housings for field-deployed environments — vibration, thermal, and shock tolerant
Lead optical alignment, characterization, and beam quality measurement on integrated systems
Support field testing end-to-end: setup, alignment, data collection, post-test analysis, and failure writeups
Perform structural and thermal analysis to validate optomechanical designs under real operating conditions
Work directly with fabricators and vendors on DFM, tolerancing, and production readiness
Generate optical system documentation, drawings, and BOMs meeting MIL-STD and ITAR requirements
What We're Looking For
2–5+ years in optomechanical or optical engineering with real hardware experience
Proficiency in Zemax OpticStudio for optical design and tolerance analysis
Hands-on optical alignment and characterization experience — you've built and tuned real systems, not just modeled them
Mechanical design experience in CAD (SolidWorks preferred) for opto-mechanical mounts, housings, and assemblies
Understanding of thermal and structural effects on optical performance
Familiarity with high-power laser optics — damage thresholds, coating selection, thermal lensing
Comfortable working across mechanical, electrical, and laser teams to integrate optical subsystems
Where you probably come from: Defense or aerospace optics programs, national labs, industrial laser companies, research institutions with fielded optical instruments, or advanced R&D groups where you built and deployed real hardware. We're open to candidates with strong lab or simulation backgrounds who are ready to move into a product environment.
Not a fit if: Your experience is entirely theoretical or software-based with no hands-on optical bench or hardware integration work.
Nice-to-Haves
Experience with fast steering mirrors or beam steering systems for high speed pointing and tracking applications
Experience with high-power CW laser beam delivery or directed energy systems
Background in beam steering, fast steering mirrors, or pointing and tracking systems
Familiarity with MIL-STD standards and ITAR compliance
Experience with environmental, vibration, or shock testing of optical assemblies
Active security clearance or ability to obtain one
Education
BS or MS in Optical Engineering, Physics, Mechanical Engineering, or related field.
What you've built matters more than where you went to school.
How You Operate
Extreme bias for action. You'd rather build a prototype tomorrow than model it for a month
Rigorous testing mindset. You characterize your own systems before the field does
Comfortable with ambiguity and fast, constantly iterating in a startup environment
Your brain only releases dopamine when you're building
You debug from first principles, not Stack Overflow
Clear communicator across mechanical, electrical, optical, and software teams
Self-directed. You identify what needs to happen next and do it without being told
Why Join Aurelius Systems?
Build more in 1 month than most engineers build in 1 year. We field test weekly. Your work goes downrange, not into a filing cabinet.
Career velocity is real. Erick Brito went from Founding Robotics Engineer to Lead in 12 months. At ~10 engineers, there are no layers between you and impact… or between you and your next title.
Work on a problem that actually matters. Small, cheap drones are changing warfare. Our laser systems are the asymmetric answer. Think infinite magazine, cost-per-shot near zero, scalable to every base, border, facility, truck and infrastructure.
Join the densest defense startup ecosystem in the country. California is where the next generation of defense companies are being built. You'll be in the room with the people reshaping how America builds weapons.
How we work: Core hours are Monday–Friday, 9 to 6. When we're sprinting toward a demo or field test, the team ramps up… nights, weekends, whatever it takes to ship.
When the sprint lands, we ramp down. We don't manufacture intensity for show. We go hard when the mission demands it, and we recover when it doesn't. If you've worked at SpaceX, against a mission-critical timeline, or on a racing team, you already know the rhythm.
Benefits
Competitive salary + equity
United Health Care medical, dental, and vision coverage
Flexible 18 days PTO + 5 sick days
Travel to field test events and range days
Covered daily lunches and office snacks + drinks
E-bike / scooter stipend ( Up to $500)
Direct access to leadership and real ownership over your work
Export Control Notice
This role requires access to export-controlled information or items that require "U.S. Person" status. As defined by U.S. law, individuals who are any one of the following are considered to be a "U.S. Person": (1) U.S. citizens, (2) legal permanent residents (a.k.a. green card holders), and (3) certain protected classes of asylees and refugees, as defined in 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3).
Don't Check Every Box?
Even if you don't meet every qualification listed, we encourage you to apply. At Aurelius Systems, we value diverse perspectives and are always looking for talented engineers with unconventional backgrounds.
If you've done hard, hands-on technical work and you're hungry to work on something that matters reach out to our Head of Talent, alfredo@aureliussystems.us