Senior RF Systems Engineer
About Northwood Space:
Northwood is on a mission to build a data highway between earth and space and bring the benefits of space to the masses through innovations in space communications technologies. If you like building quickly and seeing your work deployed in locations around the globe with real impact, we want you at Northwood.
Role:
As an RF Systems Engineer you will be responsible for architecting and verifying communication systems between satellites and ground stations. You will influence the overall ground network and portal design based on RF performance trades, and you will collaborate with many disciplines including electrical, RF, mechanical, manufacturing, and software engineers to create the best product from concept to production.
Responsibilities:
Analyze system performance, and derive top level specifications for RF/antenna systems and signal processing - assess risk to drive where additional testing or design trades need to be performed
Plan and perform integrated system tests (either internally or with customers) focused on either physical layer performance (G/T and EIRP) or modem performance (BERT, sensitivity, EVM, spectral masks)
Model signal processing from a high level floating point - including both both software and hardware - to aid in designing modems and beamforming
Design and model antenna system design and trades - including phased array tapering, pointing/ tracking algorithms, and beamforming architectures
Provide technical support to regulatory and site operations in technical submissions
Basic Qualifications:
Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or related engineering discipline
5+ years of experience performing analysis in MATLAB, Python, Rust, or other tools for modeling and analyzing RF systems and DSP
5+ years of experience with RF test equipment such as VNA, spectrum analyzer, etc.
Preferred Experience and Skills:
Experience working with RF components including, filters, amplifiers, antennas,etc.
Experience with modem design, or transmitter/receiver emulation for test applications
Experience with link budget analysis, power flux density, dilution of precision, doppler, antenna patterns, etc.
Experience with digital communication theory and testing including bit error rate, EVM, noise figure, dynamic range, and quantization noise
Deep understanding of beamforming theory, array factor, and electromagnetic propagation in complex environments
Experience in RF line-up design, including driving filter isolation and amplifier linearity specifications
Experience with Python (or other language) for data analysis
Additional Information:
To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.
Northwood Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Northwood Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.