Crystal Growth Process Engineer - Single Crystal

Inter Action
24 is hiring a full-time Crystal Growth Process Engineer for an advanced piezoelectric materials manufacturer in central Pennsylvania (State College area). This is a direct-hire, 1st shift position.

Growing single crystals is not a job that exists in many places. This is one of them, and it is the core of what this company makes. You will own production of single crystals grown by the vertical Bridgman method, crystals that end up inside medical ultrasound systems, semiconductor equipment, and industrial sensors. Roughly half your time supports government-sponsored process development, so the work is funded, documented, and at the frontier of the field.

If you have grown crystals, run furnaces, or studied crystal growth, this is a place where that is the whole job.

• Competitive salary
• Training & development

• Develop, document, and implement production methods for single-crystal growth of piezoelectric materials
• Plan, execute, and evaluate growth test runs, then analyze results and drive process improvement
• Spend roughly 50 percent of your time on government-sponsored process development, including reporting and program compliance
• Correlate raw material properties with growth parameters and final crystal attributes to define the best process
• Apply statistical methods, including control charts and data correlation, to monitor and optimize production performance
• Investigate quality issues, customer-initiated and internal, document findings, recommend corrective actions
• Prepare technical reports and process documentation, and maintain records in the quality management system
• Collaborate across production, quality, and R&D to make crystal growth reliable and scalable

• BS in Materials Science or Chemical Engineering preferred. Degrees in Physics or a related science will absolutely be considered
• U.S. Person status is required: U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident. This role involves export-controlled technical data and government program requirements, so we cannot consider candidates who do not meet this
• Strong written and verbal communication. Writing up what you found is a real part of the job
• Comfortable in a manufacturing environment, reading process documentation, schematics, and blueprints
• Self-motivated and safety-oriented, able to work independently with minimal supervision

• MS or PhD
• Hands-on crystal growth experience:
  Bridgman, vertical gradient freeze, Czochralski, furnace operation, boule handling or sectioning
• Six Sigma, applied statistics, or LEAN manufacturing
• Minitab, and Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Access
• Three or more years in a manufacturing environment

Degree level and years of experience are flexible here. A recent graduate whose research was crystal growth is a real candidate, and so is a process engineer who learned furnaces on the floor.

Single-crystal growth is a small world, and many who do it well learned it somewhere that no longer does it. This role pairs established production with government-funded development, on a team where one engineer can genuinely change how the process runs. Central Pennsylvania offers a low cost of living and college-town quality of life, and the company offers a supportive team environment with real room to grow.

Manufacturing environment. Must be able to manipulate parts weighing up to 50 lbs. Occasional travel to customers or vendors.

Our client is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.