SlipstreamJobs tracks this role from the company's public career site. Apply directly on the employer's site.
Salary: USD 170,000 - 200,000 / annual
HawkEye 360 is seeking a Principal RF Electrical Engineer to lead the electrical and RF design of small commercial satellites that provide revolutionary RF geospatial analytics for defense and national security applications.
You will own the electrical and RF architecture of space platforms, with emphasis on digital, analog, and power electronics design as well as RF payloads including Software Defined Radios (SDRs), RF front ends, and antenna systems. You will oversee PCB design from schematic capture through layout and manufacturing, define and execute performance tests to verify mission requirements, and lead a small team of RF and Electrical Engineers. You'll provide technical guidance and mentorship while remaining hands-on with design and test activities.
Key responsibilities include:
- Design digital, analog, and power electronics for satellite flight hardware while overseeing team execution of schematic capture, PCB layout, RF chain design, and power subsystem development
- Lead PCB design and layout activities with attention to RF design considerations including controlled impedance, grounding, shielding, power distribution, and signal integrity
- Establish engineering best practices, design standards, and review processes to maintain high reliability and consistency
- Facilitate root-cause analyses and corrective action efforts for flight hardware anomalies
- Manage task planning, delegation, and technical roadmapping to ensure the RF/EE team meets program milestones
- Work closely with PCB Contract Manufacturers to ensure quality control and timely delivery
- Design and develop RF payload architectures and Software Defined Radio systems for space-based RF collection
- Develop test procedures and automation scripts to characterize SDR and RF front-end performance
- Support spacecraft integration and testing, including design of Electrical Ground Support Equipment (EGSE) and flatsats
- Perform first article hardware unit testing, including reception inspection, burn-in testing, thermal validation, and hardware checkouts
This role requires strong cross-functional collaboration with mechanical, software, payload, and systems engineering teams, excellent communication skills, and the ability to explain complex technical concepts to stakeholders.
**Requirements:**
Essential:
- Bachelor's degree in RF/Electrical Engineering or related field
- 10+ years of hands-on experience designing and testing RF electronics, including SDRs, mixers, filters, amplifiers, and receiver chains
- Expertise in PCB design and layout (Altium or similar) including schematic capture, component selection, and layout for mixed-signal and RF applications
- Strong understanding of power electronics, high-speed digital design, and analog circuit design
- Strong understanding of RF fundamentals (impedance matching, S-parameters, noise figure, linearity, etc.) and software-defined radio architectures
- Experience using lab equipment such as Spectrum Analyzers, Network Analyzers, Signal Generators, Noise Figure Analyzers, and RF test chambers
- Hands-on flight hardware experience (satellite integration, RF lab testing, prototyping, troubleshooting)
- Experience handling ESD-sensitive components and operating in cleanroom environments
- Strong communication skills to explain complex technical concepts to cross-functional stakeholders
- 1+ years of technical leadership, project leadership, or team lead experience
Desirable:
- Experience working in the smallsat or space industry with RF payloads or communication systems
- Experience designing for radiation environments (TID and Proton)
- Experience with version control (git) and modern engineering workflows
- Proficiency with Python, MATLAB, C++, or other coding languages for RF analysis and test automation
- Experience with RF simulation tools (ADS, CST, Genesys, HFSS, Scikit-RF, Emerge, or similar) and RF modeling
- Familiarity with CAD (NX, SolidWorks, etc.) to support electro-mechanical integration
