Principal Microsystems Engineer

Principal Microsystems Engineer

Job Location

US-MA-Cambridge

Requisition ID

2023-7842

Overview

Draper is an independent, nonprofit research and development company headquartered in Cambridge, MA. The 2,000+ employees of Draper tackle important national challenges with a promise of delivering successful and usable solutions. From military defense and space exploration to biomedical engineering, lives often depend on the solutions we provide. Our multidisciplinary teams of engineers and scientists work in a collaborative environment that inspires the cross-fertilization of ideas necessary for true innovation. For more information about Draper, visit www.draper.com.

Our work is very important to us, but so is our life outside of work. Draper supports many programs to improve work-life balance including workplace flexibility, employee clubs ranging from photography to yoga, health and finance workshops, off site social events and discounts to local museums and cultural activities. If this specific job opportunity and the chance to work at a nationally renowned R&D innovation company appeals to you, apply now www.draper.com/careers.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Draper is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. We understand the value of diversity and its impact on a high-performance culture. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, or genetic information.

Draper is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. To request reasonable accommodation, please contact hr@draper.com.

Responsibilities

The Embedded Microsystems and Sensors Group at Draper is seeking a Principal Systems Engineer to develop and manage requirements, architecture, interface documentation, and system specifications for systems in mission domains such as: embedded secure communications, advanced electronics miniaturization, edge processing and computing, trustworthy secure platforms, and autonomous air/sea vehicles. This role will involve working across a multi-disciplinary team (including external and internal stakeholders) innovating new microelectronics system solutions over the full system development lifecycle. The group has multidisciplinary proficiencies in secure systems architecture, hardware security and resilience, software security and resilience, system validation and accreditation, sensor development and validation, and cryptography.

Responsibilities of this position:

• Drive stakeholder needs, define concept of operations, and identify the system context to bound the problem space that the system will address
• Lead subject-matter experts across multiple engineering disciplines to define requirements & interface specifications and support program execution
• Define expectations for verification & validation of requirements & interface specifications
• Create cross-discipline architectures with micro-electronics focus using state of the art technologies and leveraging internal and external Subject Matter Experts
• Analyze requirements & interfaces to define architectures & system designs
• Maintain traceability with higher and lower-level specifications as well as system architecture & design work products
• Lead a team developing and managing one or more requirements & interface specifications
• Communicate with program members, program offices, and sponsors to present work to the technical and evaluation community.

A successful candidate will be motivated to build deeper expertise in both the core mission domains and underlying microsystems technology. This position will provide exposure to a wide range of advanced technologies (including inertial sensors, imagers, precision electronics, and advanced algorithms) as well as provide growth opportunities in the development of capabilities to address challenges in national security. Additionally, a successful candidate will be able to seamlessly join project teams that collaborate by sharing thoughts and opinions of individuals from a diverse set of experience and viewpoints in order to create the best possible technical solution.

Qualifications

Candidates are encouraged to include a cover letter that describes their interest in this position.

Required qualifications:

• Minimum MS degree in Electrical Engineering, Electrical/Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or Applied Physics along with 10+ years of relevant experience; or BS degree in a relevant discipline with 15 years of relevant work experience
• Experience as a systems engineering team lead
• Experience developing and managing requirements for complex systems
• Experience identifying, designing, and managing interfaces for complex systems
• Experience defining expectations for verification & validation of requirements & interface specifications
• Experience maintaining traceability between requirements and system architecture & design work products
• Technical depth in fields relevant to electronics development, embedded systems, embedded software, or packaging miniaturization such as:
  • Possess a broad understanding of microprocessors, Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), and real-time software & firmware needed to enable solutions.
  • Have experience with serial digital data interfaces (e.g. SPI, RS422, Ethernet) used to interconnect distributed and modular avionics.
  • Understand power electronics, A/D, D/A, clock and timing electronics that support and interface with the digital electronics.
• Be able to work with thermal analysis and reliability experts in developing solutions.
• Expertise in full life-cycle systems engineering (architecture, design, development, integration, approval, and deployment) of security technologies and components within cyber-physical systems and systems-of-systems
• Strong presentation skills and the ability to articulate complex technical ideas to both internal and external stakeholders
• Strong set of interpersonal and communication skills with demonstrated experience of fostering a culture of inclusion in the workplace

The following additional qualifications are highly desirable but not required:

• Experience in the development of System Security documentation per Government requirements
• Experience planning and leading Systems Engineering Technical Reviews
• Experience working with modern data bus / electrical interfaces for flight/space systems
• Experience in writing innovative R&D proposals to commercial and government sponsors
• An understanding of the fundamentals of cryptographic key management, public key infrastructure, and NSA's Key Management Infrastructure, and the applications of cryptology
• Be familiar with the unique aspects of space avionics: environmental testing (MIL-STD-810), radiation hardening, and EMI/EMC considerations (MIL-STD-461).
• Active security clearance

Applicants selected will be subject to a government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information.

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