Experienced Electrical Engineer - Embedded Systems Engineer, Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation's premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
• Extraordinary co-workers
• Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov

*These benefits vary by job classification.

About Us:

Ready to join a dynamic & diversely skilled team that solves significant issues for our nation's security? Are you passionate about advanced embedded computer systems, software, firmware, or testing of systems to ensure integrity of electronic components in support of our National Defense and security? If so, we invite you to explore this opportunity to join our impactful team and make a difference.

Department 5325, Flight Systems and Avionics is seeking an experienced Embedded System Engineer to enhance our diverse engineering team. The position is ideal for individuals eager to design, develop, and create advanced electronic systems.

Job Summary: We are seeking a motivated, detail oriented, and creative experienced Embedded System Engineer to join our engineering team. You will work under the guidance of experienced engineers, contributing to the creation of innovative solutions while ensuring compliance with industry standards and safety regulations. The ideal candidate will possess a strong foundation in computer or electrical engineering principles, excellent problem-solving skills, and a passion for technology. The position offers an excellent opportunity for professional growth and development in a collaborative and supportive environment.

Key Responsibilities:

• Analyze and extract detailed functional and electrical requirements from component datasheets (e.g., sensors, FPGA/ MPSoC, communication ICs) to develop comprehensive embedded system specifications.
• Design and implement embedded firmware and software optimized for low-latency operation, including real-time data acquisition, processing, and filtering algorithms (e.g., digital filters, Kalman filters, control systems, etc.) to meet stringent timing constraints.
• Collaborate with electronic hardware engineers to define system hardware requirements, including power budgets, signal integrity, timing constraints, and interface specifications, ensuring seamless hardware-software integration.
• Develop and maintain real-time embedded software on ARM Cortex-M and/or other microcontroller platforms using C/C++ and RTOS environments (e.g., FreeRTOS).
• Perform latency analysis and profiling to identify bottlenecks and optimize interrupt handling, DMA usage, and task scheduling for deterministic system behavior.
• Create and execute detailed unit, integration, and system-level test plans, including hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) testing, to validate embedded system performance against requirements.
• Document all software design decisions, requirements traceability, and test results in compliance with industry standards.
• Lead design reviews and mentor junior engineers on best practices for embedded system design, latency optimization, and hardware interfacing.
• Troubleshoot complex hardware/software integration issues using debugging tools such as JTAG debuggers, oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and protocol analyzers.
• Prepare and maintain technical documentation, including design specifications, work instructions, test procedures, and reports.
• Staying updated with the latest technologies, tools, and industry trends to enhance skills and knowledge.

Due to the nature of work, successful candidate must be able to work onsite.

$117,500 - $235,700

*Salary range is estimated, and actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate's experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential.

• A Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline plus 5 years of experience, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q level security clearance.

The ideal R&D Electrical Engineering candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following:

• Graduate degree in Electrical Engineering or a highly related field where an independent research project was a graduation requirement (e.g., independent project, thesis, or dissertation).
• Ability to work independently and collaborate well in a multidisciplinary team of designers and test engineers.
• Outstanding verbal and written skills, including the ability to develop and present briefings that are clear and compelling.

Also, for this posting we are seeking individuals with the following experience:

• 5 or more years of experience in embedded systems design.
• Experience working with MPSoC hardware architectures and peripheral interfaces (SPI, I2C, UART, RS-422, Ethernet, or Highspeed backplane topologies).
• Proficient with embedded software development tools for FPGA/SoC processor architectures: IDEs, compilers, version control (Git), and debugging hardware, operating system device tree configuration.
• Experience with FPGA development using either VHDL or Verilog for hardware description.
• Demonstrated experience with SoC integration across the Processing System (PS) and Programmable Logic System (PL).
• Experience implementing Embedded Soft Processors to include configuration, customization, and software development with the Software Development Kit.
• Experience with Embedded Operating systems, RTOSs, and real-time debugging techniques.
• Proven embedded software delivery using C/C++, Rust, Assembly, or Python.
• Strong expertise in latency-sensitive embedded software design, including interrupt-driven programming, DMA, and real-time scheduling.
• Ability to specify and evaluate system hardware requirements such as power consumption, timing constraints, and signal integrity.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills for technical documentation and cross-team collaboration.

The Flight Systems and Avionics (5325) Department developments and delivers innovative advanced avionic flight components and systems in support of critical programs at Sandia National Labs. These avionics systems target multiple applications that include computing solutions for Vehicle Navigation, Pointing, Control, Hardware in the loop testing, Specialized Radars and Hypersonic systems. Our department specializes in reconfigurable modular digital signal processing systems utilizing state-of-the-art electronics, FPGA technology and general-purpose microprocessors.

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.

Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.

If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.

If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.