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Helion is a fusion power company on a mission to build the world's first commercial fusion power plant. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Everett, WA, the company has raised $1.5 billion from leading investors including Sam Altman, SoftBank, and Thrive Capital. Helion's prototype, Polaris, has achieved record-breaking plasma temperatures of 150 million degrees Celsius, and the company is advancing toward Orion, its planned commercial fusion power plant.
In this Senior Materials Engineer role, you will lead the development of dielectric materials for high-voltage components in fusion reactor environments. Reporting to the Materials Science Manager, Metals and Dielectrics, you will own multi-disciplinary projects focused on novel insulating materials that perform under extreme conditions—high voltage, heat, stress, and radiation exposure.
Key responsibilities include:
- Leading high-impact projects to develop and evaluate advanced high-voltage dielectric insulating materials for fusion generators
- Designing and executing testing campaigns to characterize electrical properties and behavioral limits under demanding conditions
- Conducting comprehensive literature reviews on advanced dielectric materials and synthesizing findings for cross-functional teams
- Collaborating with internal teams, external vendors, national laboratories, and universities to expand material capabilities
- Representing Helion at technical conferences and building a collaborative technical network
- Operating effectively in a fast-moving environment with evolving requirements, balancing risk and speed
This is an onsite role in Everett, WA, joining a team that values urgency, rigor, ownership, and delivering hard truths to solve unprecedented engineering challenges.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Advanced degree (Master's or PhD) and/or extensive expertise in electrically insulating and dielectric materials, typically demonstrated by a degree in materials science, electrical engineering, physics, nuclear engineering, or related disciplines
- 8+ years of industry-related experience, including proven track record executing R&D and development projects (including design reviews) for commercial products
- Demonstrated capability to plan and lead R&D efforts guided by milestone schedules
- Bias for action, ability to execute with urgency, and preference for learning through rapid prototyping
PREFERRED:
- Experience with radiation effects testing and characterization
- Proven results taking products from seed concepts through commercial deployment
- Practical knowledge of multi-physics modeling for simulating microstructures and properties based on processing and operating environments
