Staff Power Electronics Engineer

Job Description

Job Description

About the Role

At H3X, we are building the most advanced electric motors in the world for sustainable aviation, marine, industrial, and defense applications. At 12 kW/kg continuous, the HPDM family of integrated motor drives is a step change in electric propulsion technology and removes one of the main barriers blocking widespread proliferation of electric and hybrid aircraft. Our motors range in size from 30 kW to 30 MW, include integrated drives, and are 3X lighter than competitors’ systems.

We are looking to hire a Senior or Staff Power Electronics Engineer who will oversee inverter development, taking the design from prototype to production for a next generation product line. The ideal candidate has experience in the entire product development cycle including requirements definition, design and analysis, and test and validation. You will be a key part of the core engineering team and will have a direct impact on the trajectory of the company.

Responsibilities

• Own the power electronics hardware for high power density integrated motor drives, from requirements → concept → prototype → production readiness.

• Translate product requirements into inverter flowdown requirements (performance, safety, reliability, manufacturability, testability).

• Lead schematic design and high-density PCB layout (Altium), including stack-up, creepage/clearance strategy, high-current power paths, and gate-drive layout.

• Design and optimize wide-bandgap power stages (SiC and/or GaN): switching behavior, gate drive, protection, sensing, isolation, and thermal/packaging constraints.

• Engineer for low parasitics (power loop inductance, gate loop inductance, current sense fidelity) using simulation and measurement; apply tools like Ansys Q3D (or equivalent) where useful.

• Develop and validate designs using circuit and system simulation (LTSpice / PLECS / MATLAB/Simulink or equivalent).

• Drive EMI/EMC design and debug: grounding strategy, filtering (CMCs, Y-caps, etc.), shielding approaches, and layout practices; partner with test teams through pre-compliance and compliance efforts.

• Build and execute hardware test and characterization plans (DVP&R): DPT, thermal, fault response, transient behavior (and more) across the operating envelope.

• Be the “go-to” for debugging: efficiently isolate root cause across electrical/mechanical/firmware interfaces and implement corrective actions (design changes, manufacturing improvements, etc).

• Partner with Supply Chain / Manufacturing on DFM/DFT, PCB fab/assembly coordination, inverter BOM ownership, and sustaining support through prototype builds.

• Collaborate with motor control team to ensure clean interfaces (sensing, protection, comms, timing), and support integrated system bring-up in the lab.

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years professional experience in power electronics hardware, with scope appropriate for Senior or Staff level ownership.

• M.S./Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering or equivalent experience

• Deep hands-on experience with high-density PCB layout for power electronics (Altium strongly preferred): disciplined component placement, current return paths, loop minimization, and mixed-signal best practices.

• Demonstrated experience with wide-bandgap devices (SiC and/or GaN) and their practical design implications (gate drive, dv/dt, di/dt, protection, layout sensitivity), as well as high-voltage, high-current constraints: isolation strategy, creepage/clearance, partial discharge, etc.

• Excellent debugging and bring-up skills: can take a new inverter from “first power” to stable operation; comfortable with oscilloscopes/differential probes, current probes, impedance considerations, and safe high-power lab practices.

• Proficiency in at least two of: Altium, LTSpice/PLECS, MATLAB/Simulink, and comfort learning new tools quickly.

• Strong fundamentals in power conversion, magnetics basics, sensing/isolation, protection, and control interface requirements for inverter systems.

• Ability to write clear technical documentation (requirements, schematics/layout notes, test plans, validation reports) and communicate crisply across disciplines.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience taking an inverter/power electronics product from concept to production, ideally in aerospace, automotive, or similarly rigorous environments.

• Experience with EMI/EMC standards and compliance workflows (e.g., DO-160G or similar), including design-for-compliance and lab troubleshooting.

• Experience with parasitics extraction / field solvers (e.g., Ansys Q3D) and correlating models to bench measurements.

• Familiarity with motor drive systems (PMSMs, FOC concepts) and practical integration considerations (sensing, timing, protection coordination).

• Mechanical integration awareness: packaging constraints, thermal interfaces, and collaboration with mechanical teams (Solidworks proficiency is a plus).

• Demonstrated track record of mentoring engineers and raising the bar on hardware quality, review rigor, and lab practices.

Benefits & Compensation

• Compensation: $140,000 - $235,000 annual salary

• Employee equity incentive plan

• Health insurance: medical, vision, dental, ST & LT disability, and life

• Gym membership stipend (up to $60/month)

• Outdoor Recreation Reimbursement ($900 annual maximum)

• Flexible hours (deliverable-based goals)

• Flexible time off (just need manager approval)

• Relocation package

• Monthly company events

• 401k program

The Company

H3X Technologies is a U.S.-based manufacturer of electric motors for sustainable aviation, marine, industrial, and defense applications. They have developed a family of integrated motor drives that can scale in power from 30kW to 30MW with power densities as high as 12 kW/kg and best-in-class efficiency. This high performance is enabled by novel scalable core technology and proprietary manufacturing processes for motor stacking, winding, and assembly. The design, manufacturing, and testing of their products is done in-house at their headquarters in Louisville, Colorado.

H3X’s world-class team is composed of experts from Tesla, SpaceX, GE Aviation, and Siemens with deep knowledge in electric machines, power electronics, material science, control systems, and advanced manufacturing. They take pride in our multidisciplinary approach, relentless dedication, high capital efficiency, and Skunkworks-style execution.

H3X has raised over $30M and has backing from top VC firms and strategic firms including Lockheed Martin, Hanwha, Y Combinator, Cubit Capital, Metaplanet, TechNexus, and Liquid 2 Ventures to deploy capital for rapid scaleup.

H3X is poised to become the world’s leading supplier of advanced electric motors by 2030 to drive deep decarbonization in aviation, marine, and heavy industrial applications and unlock next-generation electrified defense technology to strengthen national security.

H3X is an equal opportunity-affirmative action employer and considers all qualified applicants for employment based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, past or present military service or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate.