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Rocket Lab is seeking an FPGA Engineer II to join the Space Systems division in Long Beach, CA. This role focuses on developing and verifying FPGA firmware designs for avionics systems in spacecraft programs serving civil, commercial, and defense customers. The engineer will work collaboratively across disciplines on satellite programs that have enabled over 1,700 missions, including projects for NASA, the Space Development Agency, and the U.S. Space Force.
Key responsibilities include:
- Collaborating with cross-functional engineering teams to develop firmware architecture and requirements
- Designing and verifying FPGA firmware for Xilinx and Microchip FPGA and SoC devices
- Creating documentation for FPGA operation and system interfaces
- Participating in comprehensive test campaigns from module-level to automated system-level testing
- Contributing to on-orbit testing and operation of developed systems
Required qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in electrical, computer, software, or related engineering discipline
- 2+ years of FPGA firmware development experience
- Proficiency in VHDL
- Strong understanding of FPGA design fundamentals and principles
- U.S. citizenship (program requirement)
Desirable experience includes:
- Advanced degree (Master's or PhD) in engineering
- Expertise with Xilinx and Microchip tools
- Verification frameworks (UVM, VUnit)
- Software-defined radios and DSP algorithms
- Radiation-hardened FPGA design for spacecraft avionics
- Signal integrity and digital timing analysis
- Interface protocols (SPI, UART, I2C, CAN, GigE, PCIe)
- Embedded software development
- PCB design and schematic reading
- Lab equipment proficiency
- Git, JIRA, and CI/CD environments
The role offers opportunities to work on cutting-edge space missions and see designs deployed on-orbit. The position requires occasional exposure to production environments with moderate noise, dust, and fumes.
