Senior PCB Designer

A VC-funded, early-stage space technology startup based in Seattle, WA, is developing advanced Geospatial Intelligence and defense technologies. The company’s technology centers around a proven, scalable electronically steered radar architecture for sophisticated spaceborne applications, including Earth observation using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) techniques, as well as advanced defense missions such as target tracking on the ground and in the air.

The company is seeking an accomplished Senior PCB Designer to own the architecture, execution, and quality assurance of printed circuit board layouts supporting scalable electronically steered array hardware for sophisticated spaceborne SAR and advanced defense target-tracking missions. This role blends hands-on technical layout work with adherence to established standards and design processes as part of a small team of PCB designers.

The ideal candidate will have extensive experience developing high-speed, mixed-signal, RF, and power boards for space or aerospace environments and thrive in a fast-paced, multidisciplinary setting.

Key Responsibilities

• PCB layout design for high-speed digital, mixed-signal, RF front-end, and power management boards supporting spaceborne radar payloads and phased-array antenna modules.
• In collaboration with the Responsible Engineer (RE), provide input to define and maintain board-level architecture, layer stack-ups, and routing strategies, ensuring signal integrity, impedance control, and EMI/EMC compliance.
• Execute detailed component placement and routing for complex multilayer designs, including high-density BGAs, SERDES, DDR, FPGA, and high-frequency RF interconnects.
• Own the full design lifecycle — from schematic collaboration and layout execution through DFM, fabrication, assembly, and hardware bring-up support.
• Partner with the RE to integrate board design within mechanical, RF, thermal, and system-level constraints, ensuring mechanical compatibility, manufacturability, and serviceability.
• Serve as a point of contact for standardized PCB layout practices, DFM/DFA/DFT rules, ECAD constraint management, and centralized component-library oversight.
• Participate in formal design reviews, enforce design rules, and ensure documentation packages meet aerospace and defense standards.
• Coordinate with contract design-service partners to ensure alignment with internal engineering standards and deliverables.
• Collaborate with the RE and Program Office to support PCB fabrication and assembly vendors with DFM activities and technical inquiries, ensuring compliance with stack-up, impedance, and material specifications for space and defense environments.
• Contribute to supply-chain readiness and material qualification efforts for high-reliability boards, including polyimide, low-outgassing, and radiation-tolerant materials.

Required Qualifications

• Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related discipline, or demonstrated equivalent skills and experience.
• Significant professional experience in PCB layout design.
• Significant experience operating as a principal-level individual contributor within multidisciplinary engineering teams delivering complex spaceborne hardware.
• Expert proficiency in Altium Designer and strong command of constraint-driven design.
• Strong understanding of impedance control, differential-pair routing, grounding strategies, thermal management, and EMI/EMC mitigation.
• Significant experience with DFM/DFA/DFT principles and close collaboration with PCB fabrication and assembly vendors.
• Familiarity with aerospace or defense hardware design requirements, including shock, vibration, thermal, radiation, and reliability considerations.
• Experience leading Altium toolchain integration, library management, and automation/scripting.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to present to senior leadership and collaborate effectively with customers, suppliers, and engineering partners.
• Must be eligible to work on U.S. export-controlled projects (ITAR).

Bonus Qualifications

• Experience designing PCBs for spacecraft payloads, Synthetic Aperture Radar systems, or electronically steered RF arrays.
• Proficiency with 3D ECAD/MCAD co-design workflows and mechanical constraint management.
• Knowledge of IPC Class 3 and NASA or MIL specifications for PCB fabrication and assembly.
• Exposure to high-power or high-voltage design practices and power-integrity simulation tools.
• Strong layout skills for power integrity and signal integrity.
• Knowledge of thermal transfer through PCB materials.
• Experience with high-frequency RF routing principles and circuits.
• Experience developing mission-critical hardware for space and/or defense environments.
• Significant experience designing complex multilayer PCBs with high-speed interfaces such as PCIe, DDR, SERDES, JESD, and Ethernet.
• Willingness to travel occasionally to fabrication partners or testing facilities.
• Flexibility to support critical program milestones during extended hours when necessary.