Senior FPGA Engineer II

SENIOR FPGA ENGINEER II

Based at our Optical Systems sites in Littleton, CO, you will support Tranche 3 of the U.S. Space Development Agency’s (SDA) Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA) using the latest FPGA technologies including Xilinx to support advanced Electro-Optical (EO/IR) technology.

• 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.

• 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 a U.S. Government Security Clearance.

• 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.
• Active TS/SCI security clearance.

This position may require prolonged periods of sitting, standing, walking, computer work, and occasional exposure to moderate levels of noise, dust, and fumes in production areas.

Base salary is only one part of Rocket Lab’s compensation package for this role. You may be eligible for company stock, or cash incentives, and can purchase discounted stock through Rocket Lab’s Employee Stock Purchase Program. Employee benefits also include medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage; 401(k) retirement plan options; paid vacation, holidays, and sick leave; paid parental leave; and other discounts and perks.

Base Pay Range (CO Only): $131,300—$218,700 USD

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage
• 401(k) retirement plan options
• Paid vacation, holidays, and sick leave
• Paid parental leave
• Other discounts and perks

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including International Traffic in Arms Regulations, Rocket Lab employees must be U.S. citizens or hold required authorizations. Candidates seeking to work in U.S. offices may need to obtain necessary clearances.

For candidates seeking to work in New Zealand offices, background checks will be undertaken that include nationality checks, and eligibility is limited to those who hold citizenship of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the European Union, or a NATO country.

Rocket Lab provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment at Rocket Lab, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.