Sr Principal Engineer RF Microwave Design

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people’s lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation’s history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they’re making history.

Northrop Grumman Space Systems (NGSS) designs, builds and delivers space, defense and aviation-related systems to customers around the world. Our main products include launch vehicles and related propulsion systems; missile products, subsystems and defense electronics; precision weapons, armament systems and ammunition; satellites and associated space components and services; and advanced aerospace structures.

Working Environment
The position is available at the Northrop Grumman facility in Goleta CA, part of the Northrop Grumman, Space Systems (NGSS) - Space Components Business Unit, which specializes in deployable systems for spacecraft such as solar arrays, instrument booms, and various extendible support structures, as well as antennas for space and aerospace applications such as satellite communication, radar systems, and electronic warfare (EW).

As a Senior Principal RF Microwave Design Engineer at NGSS – Goleta you will be responsible for designing, manufacturing, testing and delivering RF antennas for various applications in a leadership role on a team working across multiple NG locations to deliver communications , radar and EW systems at the cutting edge of space and aerospace technology.  You will have ownership of your work from initial iterative studies through the design and analysis phases and may also participate in the manufacturing, testing, and integration of the systems.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop and refine antenna components utilizing design skills, hand calculations, 3D design tools, or other modeling tools as needed.
• Generate CAD drawings and related documents.
• Participate and present in internal and external (customer) design and program reviews.
• Manage and perform manufacturing and testing of a variety of different antennas and antenna systems for airborne and space applications.
• Operate and maintain on-site antenna test facility.
• Document assembly and test plans and procedures.
• Manage and track multiple priorities while maintaining focus towards common goals of the program team, matrix organization, and customers.

Basic Qualifications:

To be considered for this position, you must minimally meet the knowledge, skills, and abilities listed below:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or Physics or many years of experience working at an engineering level. (Electrical Engineering degree is highly desired)
• Minimum 9 years of relevant product development, test, or delivery experience
• Strong background in RF microwave and/or antenna theory and suitability to be trained upward
• Experience in RF microwave and/or antenna hardware build and test
• Familiar with common RF lab test equipment such as microwave network analyzers and computer aided test equipment
• Proficient with Microsoft Office tools suite
• Strong communication skills (oral and written)
• Ability to work independently as well as in a team environment
• Ability to multitask and organize/prioritize job assignments in a fast-paced development environment
• Active DoD Secret Security Clearance.  

Preferred Qualifications:

Candidates with these desired skills will be given preferential consideration:

• Background in antenna testing and antenna range operations
• Quasi-optical antenna systems and concepts (i.e. frequency selective surfaces, polarization selective surfaces, microwave lens design)
• Reflector based antenna design and analysis
• Broad band/narrow band feed horn design and analysis
• Familiarity with antenna alignment and bore-sighting techniques
• Familiarity with analysis tools such as MathCAD, MATLAB, GRASP10, CHAMP, HFSS, CST Microwave Studio.
• Familiarity with CAD software, preferably PTC Creo Parametric 4.
• Experience with RF test instruments such as network analyzer, spectrum analyzer, power meter, signal generator, noise figure analyzer, etc.
• Experience in space-borne products
• Cost Account Management (CAM) Experience
• Demonstrated experience leading a technical team

Salary Range: $129,700 USD - $194,500 USD

Employees may be eligible for a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The health and safety of our employees and their families is a top priority. The company encourages employees to remain up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccinations. U.S. Northrop Grumman employees may be required, in the future, to be vaccinated or have an approved disability/medical or religious accommodation, pursuant to future court decisions and/or government action on the currently stayed federal contractor vaccine mandate under Executive Order 14042 https://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/.

Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO/AA and Pay Transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for most positions.