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Mesa Quantum is building chip-scale quantum devices—atomic clocks, magnetometers, and gyroscopes—that provide resilient Position, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) for defense, telecom, space, and critical infrastructure. The company combines expertise in AMO physics, photonics, microfabrication, and engineering, backed by top-tier deep-tech investors and the U.S. Department of Defense.
You will lead the mechanical, thermal, and packaging design of Mesa Quantum UK's chip-scale atomic devices. These devices center on a small, heated alkali vapor cell probed by a laser; your mechanical design decisions determine power consumption, thermal isolation, magnetic field cleanliness, vibration resilience, and manufacturability. You will own the full lifecycle from first prototype through production, working with a small UK team and Mesa's engineering teams in the United States, reporting to the CTO.
Key responsibilities include:
• Build and validate thermal models predicting heater power and temperature gradients across operating ranges, correlated to measured data.
• Own mechanical and thermal design of atomic clocks, magnetometers, and gyroscopes from concept through production-release drawings and prototypes.
• Design magnetic shielding and field control, including multi-layer high-permeability shields, field coils, and non-magnetic materials and fasteners.
• Design hermetic and vacuum packages: ceramic and metal packages, sealing, getters, feedthroughs, backfill, verified with leak testing and outgassing-controlled materials.
• Run structural, modal, vibration, and shock analysis; design for environmental testing and deployment on vehicles, aircraft, and fielded platforms.
• Own tolerance stacks and optical alignment for laser, optics, vapor cell, and detector, with production-quality GD&T drawings (ISO GPS or ASME Y14.5).
• Design and build test fixtures, assembly tooling, and environmental test setups for device characterization.
• Drive design for manufacture and assembly with UK machining, packaging, and photonics suppliers; support volume production transfer.
• Establish mechanical design standards, documentation, and configuration control for the UK team.
• Design thermal isolation for heated vapor cells and lasers, including low-conductance supports, radiation shields, and vacuum or low-pressure environments.
• Collaborate with academic, government, and industry partners in the UK quantum ecosystem.
Requirements:
• At least 6 years of experience designing precision mechanical hardware, including at least one design taken from prototype to production.
• Expert 3D CAD skills (SolidWorks, Creo, or similar) and production-quality drawings with GD&T.
• Thermal and structural finite element analysis (ANSYS, COMSOL, or similar), correlated to test data.
• Experience designing small hardware where millimeters and milliwatts matter.
• Experience with vacuum or hermetic packaging: sealing methods, leak testing, outgassing control, and cleanliness.
• Hands-on build and test skills: assemble prototypes and run thermal and vibration tests independently.
• Clear technical documentation and ability to work directly with machine shops, package vendors, and contract manufacturers.
• Degree in mechanical engineering, or physics/engineering degree with equivalent mechanical design experience.
• Eligible to work in the UK.
• Valuable but not required: experience with atomic clocks, magnetometers, gyroscopes, quantum sensors, magnetic shield design, MEMS or microelectronic packaging, laser or photonics packaging, or defense/aerospace/space hardware and environmental qualification (DEF STAN 00-35, MIL-STD-810).
