Job Details
New ideas are all around us, but only a few will change the world. That’s our focus at JPL. We ask the biggest questions, then search the universe for answers—literally. We build upon ideas that have guided generations, then share our discoveries to inspire generations to come. Your mission—your opportunity—is to seek out the answers that bring us one step closer. If you’re driven to discover, create, and inspire something that lasts a lifetime and beyond, you’re ready for JPL.
Located in Pasadena, California, JPL has a campus-like environment situated on 177 acres in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and offers a work environment unlike any other: we inspire passion, foster innovation, build collaboration, and reward excellence.
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, based in Pasadena, CA is NASA’s lead center for robotic exploration of the solar system. We have an unmatched history creating groundbreaking advances in science and technology, and we’ve been in the space exploration business since the beginning. JPL builds rovers for Mars, landers for Europa, explorers for the Moon, and spacecraft to study our changing Earth. How would you like to be part of a team that wants to make a difference within the universe?
Within the Component Engineering, Technology and Assurance Office, the Radiation Effects Group at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is seeking an early-career Radiation Effects Test Engineer to develop test hardware and automation software and characterize microelectronics for space missions. The position combines single-event effects (SEE) and total ionizing dose (TID) testing with embedded systems development and laboratory measurement.
The engineer will design custom test boards, automate electrical measurements, configure devices for irradiation, and analyze radiation-induced changes in performance. Devices may include memories, FPGAs and systems-on-chip (SoCs), microcontrollers, mixed-signal circuits, and power semiconductors. Working with senior radiation effects engineers, the successful candidate will take responsibility for assigned hardware, software, and test activities and provide results that support component selection and radiation hardness assurance decisions.
Key Responsibilities
Develop and maintain reusable Python software to configure instruments, sequence measurements, log data, and support automated SEE and TID testing.
Design schematics and printed circuit board layouts for device biasing, monitoring, functional testing, and electrical characterization before, during, and after irradiation.
Integrate programmable power supplies, source measure units, digital multimeters, oscilloscopes, function generators, and relay or switch matrices. Select and configure instruments to meet the measurement and protection needs of each test.
Develop embedded software and device interfaces for microcontroller, FPGA, and SoC test platforms. Implement functional monitoring, error detection, and recovery appropriate to each device, with senior support for FPGA architecture and HDL development as needed.
Prepare devices and evaluation boards for radiation testing by establishing operating conditions, isolating the device under test, and verifying monitoring and measurement paths.
Support SEE testing at accelerator facilities and TID testing in the laboratory, including setup, execution, troubleshooting, and configuration control.
Analyze upsets, transients, latchup, burnout, and dose-dependent parameter degradation as applicable to the device. Document test conditions, identify measurement limitations, and assess uncertainty in the results.
Write test plans and reports, document hardware and software, and present results to colleagues and project teams. Work with device, systems, and mission assurance engineers to relate test results to application needs.
You Must Have:
Bachelors with 3 years of related experience, or master's degree with 1 year of related experience in Electrical Engineering, Computer…