Senior FPGA Engineer II

SPACE SYSTEMS

At Rocket Lab, we’re not just launching rockets — we're building the future of space. Our Space Systems team builds everything from complete spacecraft, precision payloads to the components and subsystems that allow them to thrive in space, like solar panels, flight software, star trackers, optical systems, separation systems, radios, and more.

Our Space Systems team has enabled more than 1,700 missions, ranging from interplanetary exploration, in-space manufacturing to national security and defense initiatives. The team has built spacecraft, payloads, and components for missions to the Moon and Mars, working with partners including NASA, the Space Development Agency, and the U.S. Space Force. Whether it’s a single high-performance spacecraft, constellation, or the vertically integrated components that help them get to space — our world class Space Systems team is empowering some of the boldest and most ambitious space missions.

SENIOR FPGA ENGINEER II

Rocket Lab’s Optical Systems division solves mission-critical space domain and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) challenges for Department of Defense (DoD) and Intelligence Community (IC) customers. Our vision is to revolutionize the space-based payload market with innovative and novel designs for space, terrestrial, and airborne environments. Building on more than 20 years of electro-optical and infrared systems innovation from Geost, Optical Systems delivers solutions to the warfighter for responsive, scalable sensing solutions across all orbital domains.

You will be a Senior FPGA Engineer II based at our Rocket Lab Optical Systems worksites in Long Beach, CA; Littleton, CO; Phoenix, AZ; Albuquerque, NM; Chantilly, VA; and Tucson, AZ. You will design Xilinx FPGAs in VHDL to support Tranche 3 of the Space Development Agency’s Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA).

WHAT YOU’LL GET TO DO

• Work with the hardware design team on requirements.
• Complete FPGA logic design, coding, simulation, and testing.
• Support hardware and software development teams in bring-up and test of products.
• Provide subject-matter expertise regarding design and automated test development procedures to customers and production support team.
• Perform research and analysis of data, such as customer proposed specifications, datasheets, or manuals to determine design approach and/or feasibility.
• Execute debugging of the design in the lab.
• Perform synthesis, implementation, and timing analysis.

YOU’LL BRING THESE QUALIFICATIONS AS SENIOR FPGA ENGINEER II:

• Bachelor’s degree in computer engineering or electrical engineering or equivalent discipline with 8+ years of experience
• Experience in FPGA firmware design with VHDL.
• Ability to obtain and maintain an U.S. Government Security Clearance

THESE QUALIFICATIONS WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE: 

• Experience with Xilinx/AMD Versal architecture
• Experience with FPGAs and embedded systems in a radiation environment, including SEU/SEL impact and mitigation.
• Experience in FPGA- or ASIC-based image processing algorithms.
• Experience in both creating IP from scratch in RTL and integrating existing IP into RTL and block designs.
• Familiarity with C, Python or MATLAB and/or experience translating algorithms from a scripted language to HDL.
• Experience with software interfaces including interrupts and DMA.
• Experience with DDR4, Aurora, and high-speed transceiver design and verification.
• Familiarity with AXI Stream and AXI Memory Mapped interfaces.
• PCB design and schematic capture and layout with tools such as Altium Designer.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to focus
• Regularly required to sit, use hands and fingers, operate computer keyboard and controls, and communicate verbally and in writing
• Must be physically able to commute to buildings