Principal Optical Engineer

The Hardware Engineering Group at QuEra Computing is seeking strong candidates for a Principal Optical Engineer to serve as a senior individual contributor to the company’s mission of building state‑of‑the‑art, manufacturable, and deployable neutral atom quantum computers. The Hardware Engineering Group plays a crucial role in accelerating the company’s technology leadership and translating the company’s scientific breakthroughs into products delivered to customers. To accomplish this mission, we are looking to hire a candidate with graduate‑level education in optics, optical engineering, or applied physics with industry experience in an enterprise engineering environment. The ideal candidate will combine a deep, fundamental understanding of several areas of optics, design, and engineering. Although candidates with a Ph.D. in physics may be considered, applicants should ensure they have sufficient professional experience beyond academia in an enterprise engineering environment to establish themselves independently as a Principal‑level engineer.

Key Job Responsibilities

• Optical module design and development
• Work with physicists to understand requirements and architect optical systems, sub‑systems, modules, and components to support QuEra’s neutral atom computers through the full development lifecycle (R&D, productization, maintenance, and beyond).
• Technically lead an interdisciplinary team of engineers (optical, electronic, mechanical, etc.) through the product development process to take an optical module from early phase concept through to implementation and production.
• Advance state‑of‑the‑art engineering practices at QuEra through independent research, problem‑solving, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Coordinate closely with the R&D/science team to enable cutting‑edge R&D and translate scientific advances into the next generation of products.
• Troubleshoot technical issues at company headquarters and off‑site installations at customer locations (in coordination with local support team).

Qualifications

Required:

• Master’s degree in optics, optical engineering, applied physics, or a closely related field.
• 10‑15 years non‑academic work experience. Experience at an enterprise scale as well as startup preferred.
• Deep experience and knowledge of
• Free‑space optics
• Fiber optics
• Lasers
• Optical system characterization and testing
• Opto‑mechanics
• Experience bringing complex optical systems from concept to production
• Expertise with using Mechanical CAD software (e.g. Inventor, Solidworks), Product Data Management (PDM) software, Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software
• Expertise with Optical simulation software (e.g. Zemax)

Preferred:

• Experience with quantum computing, especially neutral atom
• Professional work experience in commercial product development and off‑site product deployment at customer premises.

The approximate base salary range for this position is $151,200 - $236,250.

We consistently monitor external market data and update base salary ranges accordingly. We determine base compensation decisions on several factors, including geographic placement, role‑specific knowledge, skills, and/or experience. In addition to our base salary offerings, we also provide equity grants for all new hires.

QuEra is committed to cultivating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We highly value diversity in our current and future employees and do not discriminate (including in our hiring and promotion practices) based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

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