Principal RF Design Engineer

Kirkland , United States

AI overview

Lead the maturation and sustainment of RF subsystems for advanced radar systems, driving design discussions with multidisciplinary teams to resolve complex engineering challenges.

Radar Reinvented.

Echodyne offers the world’s first compact solid-state true beam-steering radar for a wide range of industries and applications. Our high-performance radars work in all weather and are designed for autonomous vehicles, uncrewed aircraft & drones, and security of borders, critical infrastructure, and smart cities. The company combines the patented technology of metamaterials with powerful software to create a radar sensor with unprecedented performance at commercial price points. Echodyne offers its radars to companies working in Automotive, Transportation, Critical Infrastructure Protection, Border Security, Smart Cities, Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS), and Airspace Management including Urban Air Mobility (UTM).


Echodyne is seeking a Principal RF Design Engineer to join our fast-growing team. 

RESPONSIBILITIES

  • In this role, you will lead the maturation and sustainment of RF subsystems for advanced radar systems, ensuring technical excellence and fostering strong cross-functional collaboration. You will own design, verification, transition to manufacturing, and long-term sustainment of RF subsystems, serving as the primary technical point of contact for all related engineering activities. This includes driving design-shaping discussions and technical reviews with multidisciplinary teams—such as Systems, Software, Mechanical, and Manufacturing—to develop robust radar architectures, resolve complex technical challenges, and align work with program objectives and Design for Excellence (DFX) principles.
  •  You will provide deep technical expertise in RF circuit design, simulation, and analysis to guide design execution, verification planning, and risk mitigation. Additionally, you will define and architect production test strategies and supporting infrastructure to enable efficient, reliable manufacturing and quality assurance. Throughout the product lifecycle, you will lead root-cause investigations, trade studies, and continuous improvement initiatives to sustain and enhance subsystem performance.
  • Other related tasks required to fulfill the needs of the business

REQUIRED SKILLS / EXPERIENCE

  •  Demonstrated Technical Leadership and Ownership of Area of Responsibility (AOR)
    • Ability to act as the primary technical authority for RF systems, subsystems, or components, with experience developing solutions, driving trade studies, and delivering designs across the full product lifecycle
    • Experience coordinating and facilitating multidisciplinary technical reviews, engaging cross-functional stakeholders (e.g., Systems, Software, Mechanical, Manufacturing, Quality) to ensure alignment and rigor in design decisions
    • Experience defining, prioritizing, and communicating technical objectives and work plans in collaboration with program management and engineering leadership, maintaining clarity of purpose and focus on technical excellence
    • Experience implementing designs with design-for-test (DFT), design-for-manufacturing (DFM), and design-for-assembly (DFA) principles to elevate product quality, reliability, and manufacturability
    • Capable of leading process improvement initiatives, such as root-cause analyses, driving corrective and preventative actions, and refining engineering processes to improve efficiency and outcomes
  • Background in the engineering of RF Printed Circuit Assemblies
    • Experience with RF transmitter and receiver module design and analysis including the bring-up, integration, design verification and qualification of RF printed circuit assemblies
    • Experience designing High-Reliability commercial or consumer RF hardware and managing high thermal density architectures
  • Experience developing RF hardware architectures for fielded products
    •  Experience with the development of detailed RF transceiver designs including part selection trades, schematic development, and simulation
    • Expert in RF Chain/Cascade Development & Analysis for heterodyne receivers and multi-stage transmitter subsystems

DESIRED SKILLS / EXPERIENCE 
(Looking for one or more as a complement to the core skills)
 

  • Understanding of the significance of low phase noise synthesizer design, clock synthesis & distribution
  • Experience creating designs using components such as power amplifiers, driver amplifiers, digitally controlled phase-shifters & attenuators
  • Experience with design and analysis of RF circuits in a full-wave simulation suite such as HFSS/CST or equivalent

QUALIFICATIONS

  • BS Degree or higher in Electrical Engineering
  • 7 or more years of experience in RF Circuit Design

Echodyne’s technology is export controlled by the U.S. Government and we must evaluate an applicant’s eligibility to handle export-controlled information or obtain required Government authorizations.  Therefore, we will ask you as part of the application process to identify whether you are a U.S. Citizen or green card holder, or have asylum/refugee status in the U.S. 

 

WHAT WE OFFER

The pay range for this position is $159,800.00 - $239,600.00 annually

If your skills generally align but not perfectly, please apply anyway. There may be another role that’s a great fit for you!

We offer competitive compensation and benefits to our full-time, US-based employees, including:

  • Pre-IPO Stock Options
  • Generous Benefits:
    • Fully-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance premiums for you 
      • Choice of PPO or HDHP/HSA
      • Virtual Care – 98Point6
      • Employee Assistance Program
  • Mental Health coverage through Springhealth & Talkspace (Premera)
  • Travel Assistance Insurance
  • Company Paid Life Insurance
  • Company Paid Short & Long Term Disability
  • Flexible PTO
  • 401(k) plan
  • Pet Insurance
  • Prepaid Legal Program
  • Commuter Benefits
  • Paid Company Holidays

All qualified applicants receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, status as a protected veteran or any other characteristic protected by law.


 

 

Perks & Benefits Extracted with AI

  • Fully-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance: Fully-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance premiums for you
  • Paid holidays: Paid Company Holidays

Contribute to Our Success It’s not often you get the chance to change an industry by bringing truly revolutionary technology to market – technology that disrupts existing markets and creates vast new ones. It’s difficult and challenging work, but it’s also exciting, energizing, satisfying, and rewarding! We want to learn more and contribute more than ever before, and have fun while doing so. We want to do great things and be around great people. We want this to be the best job for each of us!  We keep the kitchen well-stocked with food, fruit, and drinks and there are monthly lunches, impromptu barbecues, and seasonal celebrations.  Are you hesitant to fill out an application because you may not fulfill all the requirements? Studies show women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs if they feel their background doesn’t align perfectly with the job description. At Echodyne, we are dedicated to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and fair work environment. If you are interested in a position but your background isn’t a perfect match, we strongly encourage you to apply. Even if there isn’t an ideal role for you now, your application will be kept for future opportunities. The right role could be just around the corner!

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Salary
$159,800 – $239,600 per year
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