Directed Energy Laser Subject Matter Expert; SME Engineer

Directed Energy Laser Subject Matter Expert (SME) Engineer

The Boeing Company is seeking a highly experienced Directed Energy (DE) Laser Subject Matter Expert (SME) Engineer to lead technical strategy, system design, integration, and test activities for advanced laser weapon and electro-optical systems. The ideal candidate will provide authoritative technical guidance across concept development, prototyping, fielding, and sustainment of high-energy laser (HEL) systems on aerospace, maritime, and ground platforms. This role interfaces with multidisciplinary engineering teams, program managers, government stakeholders, and external partners.

Position Responsibilities:

• Serve as the technical authority for HEL system architecture, beam control, optical design, and power/thermal management throughout system lifecycle.
• Lead requirements derivation, system trade studies, risk assessments, and design reviews.
• Develop and validate models, simulations, and performance predictions for propagation, atmospheric effects, and target interaction.
• Define and direct integration and test plans, including lab demonstrations, field tests, and operational evaluations.
• Provide guidance on safety, laser hazard analysis (LHAL), and compliance with applicable standards (e.g., ANSI Z136, MIL-STD, STANAG).
• Collaborate with systems engineering, controls, optics, power electronics, thermal, and mechanical teams to ensure subsystem compatibility and system margin.
• Mentor junior engineers, set technical direction, and capture lessons learned and best practices.
• Support proposal development, technical briefs, and customer engagements; prepare technical reports and presentations.
• Maintain awareness of emerging DE technologies, countermeasures, and regulatory/policy changes.
• Represent the organization in cross-industry working groups, technical conferences, and with government customers as needed.

This position is expected to be 100% onsite. The selected candidate will be required to work onsite at one of the listed location options.

Basic Qualifications (Required Skills/Experience):

• This position requires an active U.S. Top Secret Security Clearance (U.S. Citizenship Required). (A U.S. Security Clearance that has been active in the past 24 months is considered active)
• Bachelor of Science degree from an accredited course of study in engineering, engineering technology (includes manufacturing engineering technology), chemistry, physics, mathematics, data science, or computer science
• 20 or more years' related work experience or an equivalent combination of technical education
• 10+ years of hands-on experience in directed energy or high-power laser systems development, integration, and test.
• Experience in one or more of the following: high-energy solid-state lasers, fiber lasers, chemical lasers, beam combining, adaptive optics, beam control, pointing/tracking, laser–target interaction, or laser safety.
• Experience with system-level requirements, modeling and simulation (optical propagation, thermal management, structural dynamics), and test execution in relevant environments.
• Experience with power generation/distribution, thermal control, and electro-optical system integration on airborne, naval, or ground platforms.
• Experience conducting laser hazard analyses and implementing laser safety controls and procedures.

Preferred Qualifications (Desired Skills/Experience):

• MS/PhD with thesis or publications in optics, lasers, or related fields.
• Prior experience with weaponization, safety certification, and operational deployment of HEL systems.
• Familiarity with MIL-STD development, DO-178/DO-254 interaction for avionics integration, and Government acquisition processes.
• Experience with high-fidelity optical/atmospheric propagation tools (e.g., MODTRAN, Wave Train, FRED) and control-system simulation (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink).
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and mentoring early-career engineers.
• Proven problem-solving skills and ability to decompose complex system issues into actionable engineering tasks.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to present technical material to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Advanced optics and photonics knowledge.
• Systems engineering and architecture skills.
• Modeling & simulation proficiency.
• Test & evaluation planning and execution.
• Laser safety and regulatory compliance.
• Effective stakeholder communication and leadership.
• Strong project and risk management capabilities.