Senior Photonics Engineer (Free-Space Optics)

Location: Los Angeles, CA. The role involves outdoor test ranges, mountaintop optical ground stations, and observatories. The hired candidate must be a U.S. person under ITAR or otherwise eligible for a federally issued export-control license.

Base salary: $150,000–$220,000 per year, plus equity.

Company

hirify.global develops and operates high-power satellite platforms and optical and photonic payloads for missions from LEO to deep space.

What you will do

• Design and build tabletop experiments that emulate optical propagation through turbulent media using spatial light modulators, phase plates, and phase-screen generation.
• Integrate free-space receivers, fiber and photonic-chip front ends, and control electronics, measuring coupling efficiency, fading, bit error rate, and control-loop bandwidth.
• Characterize wavefront sensing and correction hardware, including Shack-Hartmann sensors, deformable mirrors, SLMs, and photonic-integrated alternatives.
• Run outdoor horizontal-path links and night campaigns at optical ground stations and observatories, including site coordination, laser-safety approvals, equipment transport, operations, and data reduction.
• Build and continuously calibrate Python-based optical propagation and atmospheric channel models, quantify uncertainty, and translate results into requirements for PIC, test, and payload teams.
• Define the experiment roadmap, automate the shared lab and field-data pipeline, and mentor engineers and technicians.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in optics, physics, electrical engineering, or a related technical field.
• At least 5 years of hands-on free-space optics experience in free-space optical communications, adaptive optics, or atmospheric propagation; a relevant PhD counts toward this requirement.
• End-to-end leadership of free-space optical experiments, including designing and aligning benches, taking data, and correlating measurements with models.
• Working knowledge of optical turbulence and propagation theory, including Cn², the Fried parameter, and Rytov variance.
• Working proficiency with Python for modeling and analysis.

Nice to have

• MS or PhD in optics, physics, or a related field.
• Adaptive optics experience in astronomy, beam control, or free-space optical communications.
• Experience with photonic integrated circuits, photonic lanterns, or fiber coupling through turbulence.
• Pointing, acquisition, and tracking experience, including fast steering mirrors or beacon tracking, or optical link performance analysis involving BER, SNR, scintillation, and fading.
• Experience with spatial light modulators, deformable or fast steering mirrors, or phase-plate turbulence emulators.
• Field campaigns at observatories or outdoor optical test ranges, including night operations.
• Experience with remote sensing, lidar, or atmospheric characterization instruments.
• Experience with wave-optics simulation tools such as AOTools or WaveProp and Zemax.

Culture & Benefits

• Fast-paced environment at a high-growth, Series D-funded company.
• Paid time off, medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Life insurance and paid parental leave.
• Equity in the company and additional benefits.
• Non-traditional career paths are encouraged.