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Salary: USD 110,000 - 170,000 / annual
K2 Space is building the largest and highest-power satellites ever flown, backed by over $1 billion in funding from leading investors including Altimeter Capital, ICONIQ, Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures, and T. Rowe Price. With over $1 billion in signed contracts across commercial and US government customers, K2 is mass-producing the highest-power satellite platforms ever built for missions from LEO to deep space. The company is scaling to 100 satellites per year with multiple launches planned for 2027.
In this role, you will be responsible for test and measurement of radiofrequency (RF) and microwave electronics for some of the largest and most powerful satellites ever deployed in space. In your first six months, you will develop the RF test and measurement infrastructure required to integrate and test new RF electronics and antennas for software-defined radio (SDR) systems for satellite communications. You will work with a multidisciplinary team of antenna, RF, FPGA, digital signal processing, software, mechanical, and electrical engineers to prototype systems and refine designs. Within two years, you will have contributed to developing cutting-edge RF systems that will fly in space.
Key responsibilities include:
- Lead research, design, and procurement of antenna measurement assets such as anechoic chambers and near-field scanners
- Qualify radiofrequency and antenna hardware through environmental testing including vibration, shock, thermal, and thermal vacuum (TVAC) testing
- Assist with design and validation testing for radiofrequency and microwave hardware from UHF 200 MHz through Ka band 30 GHz, including phased array antennas, low noise amplifiers, power amplifiers, filters, high-speed converters, and other RF electronic components
- Execute development and production tests to meet internal and external customer needs
- Collaborate closely with internal and external stakeholders to integrate designs into the spacecraft system
Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in computer, electrical, aerospace engineering, or other relevant science, technology, or mathematics discipline
- 2+ years of experience in microwave, RF, or antenna engineering
- Experience with RF test equipment such as vector network analyzers (VNA), spectrum analyzer, etc.
- Experience with anechoic chambers and antenna measurement assets such as near-field scanners
- Ability to work in a fast-paced and high-velocity start-up atmosphere
Nice to have:
- Experience with environmental testing for space electronics such as thermal, vibration, TVAC, radiation, and EMI/EMC testing per standards such as SMC-S-016
- Experience with RF systems testing, including antenna characterization and insertion loss tests
- Experience with antenna and electromagnetic modeling and analysis software tools such as Ansys Electronics Desktop HFSS and Altair FEKO
- Experience with software-defined radio hardware development including high-speed RF data converters (digital to analog and analog to digital converters), clock trees, and data converter interfaces
Note: This role requires U.S. Person status as defined by ITAR (U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, or certain protected individuals) or eligibility for a federally issued export control license due to access to export-controlled information and items.
