Firmware Engineer

Security clearance: Ability to obtain and maintain a DoD clearance required.

Our client is a leading developer of laser and electro-optic systems for the aerospace community, with key contributions to lasers for atmospheric sensing, laser communications, and lidar sensors for NASA, DoD, and commercial customers.

We are looking for an experienced Firmware Engineer to contribute to the development of products on our Research and Development Division in Herndon VA.

As part of our R&D division, you would join our firmware team to develop, integrate, and test our firmware products in our spaced-based, electro-optical systems.
Essential Job Duties

Lead and contribute to firmware architecture and implementation for space-based electro-optical payloads and laser systems

Perform end-to-end firmware development lifecycle: from requirements analysis through design, coding, simulation, verification, and validation

Collaborate closely with hardware, systems, software, and optical engineers in cross-functional teams to define interfaces, resolve design issues, and ensure seamless system integration

Participate in task-based iterative development cycles, incorporating rapid feedback, frequent integration points, and incremental testing to meet mission reliability goals

Conduct lab-based debugging, hardware-in-the-loop testing, and system-level validation using diagnostic tools and protocols

Support peer code reviews, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement of development processes and best practices

Apply high-reliability and space-grade techniques (e.g., fault tolerance, radiation mitigation) in a collaborative, team-oriented environment Contribute to documentation, design reviews, and risk identification throughout the product lifecycle

Job Requirements:
Experience and Expertise Required

7+ years relevant experience

BS/MS in EE or equivalent

Expertise with firmware engineering, VHDL (RTL), System Verilog (Testing) Expertise with Digital Signal Processing, precision timing, optical comms (modems), LIDAR

Experience with Xilinx, Microchip, and Lattice FPGAs and their associated development tools

Experience developing test benches and running simulations to exercise the design and to verify compliance

Experience interfacing and working with hardware designers during development, integration, and test phases

Experience using schematics and block diagrams as inputs for firmware design

Experience in high-speed serial links: GTY/GTM, JESD204B/C, Ethernet, SpaceWire Experience in standard peripheral interfaces: SPI, I2C, UART, LVDS, etc.

Experience in memory interfaces: DDR3/4, QDR, FRAM, etc.

Experience with GitHub, CI/CD for FPGA flows, code reviews, automated linting, synthesis, regression testing, timing closure, bitstream generation, release tagging

Bonus Areas

Experience in Python for build/testing automation and data analysis

Experience with Linux, scripting, Docker containers, and automation

Experience developing Hi-Rel/Space programs and TMR coding

Experience developing code (C, C++) for microcontrollers Experience with VS Code