Senior RF Engineer

Welcome to Planet. We believe in using space to help life on Earth.

Planet designs builds and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. This constellation delivers an unprecedented dataset of empirical information via a revolutionary cloudbased platform to authoritative figures in commercial environmental and humanitarian sectors. We are both a space company and data company all rolled into one.

Customers and users across the globe use Planets data to develop new technologies drive revenue power research and solve our worlds toughest obstacles.

As we control every component of hardware design manufacturing data processing and software engineering our office is a truly inspiring mix of experts from a variety of domains.

We have a peoplecentric approach toward culture and community and we strive to iterate in a way that puts our team members first and prepares our company for growth. Join Planet and be a part of our mission to change the way people see the world.

Planet is a global company with employees working remotely world wide and joining us from offices in San Francisco Washington DC Germany Austria Slovenia and The Netherlands.

About the Role:

Planet is working on the next generation small satellite bus that will host a high resolution optical imaging payload (Pelican) and a hyperspectral payload (Carbon Mapper). Planet has continuously iterated and developed small spacecraft communication systems including board level hardware antennas and ground station equipment that produce record data rates. Our system consists of transceivers in several bands as well as a worldwide network of ground stations.

We are seeking an experienced RF and Microwave Engineer to develop our nextgeneration onboard ground radios and antenna systems that push the frontiers of satellite communications. You will make evolutionary and revolutionary improvements in their performance reliability and cost including the architecture design and test of nextgeneration Sband through Kaband radios and a variety of antennas as well as work with vendors on various design projects. You will be responsible for PCB layout projects and interface with cross functional teams electrical software and mechanical engineers to address challenging design issues. You will conduct environmental and EMC testing on communication subsystems and get them ready for flight. You will work closely with systems engineering missions and manufacturing teams to ensure mission success.

This role will require you to be physically present at our headquarters in San Francisco CA 3 days a week.

Impact Youll Own:

• RF/MW hardware transceiver and circuit design up to 30GHz simulation (Spice ADS) instrumentation test and characterization
• RF/MW system design link budgets and interference analysis
• EMI testing and mitigation
• Antenna design simulation and testing (ADS HFSS)
• Digital communications theory and associated signal processing algorithms for both narrowband and wideband data transmission systems
• Software Defined Radio (SDR) platforms and respective signal processing libraries (ex.: GNURadio)
• Validation and Verification of radios and antennas preshipment and validation of radio performance on orbit after satellite launch

What You Bring:

• BSEE is required MS/PhD preferred
• 6 years of engineering excellence designing and maturing RF & MW systems transceivers antennas and/or SDRs to market ability to review lowlevel design decisions and understand their impact to the larger system/mission
• Sound fundamentals in RF/MW electromagnetics and signal processing
• Proven track record of owning designing and criticizing RF/MW circuit design RF/MW layout component selection and evaluation
• Extensive lab experience with RF/MW and mixedsignal board bring up characterization and test using various RF MW Analog and Digital test equipment
• Proven ability to adapt and learn a multitude of skills in order to develop/contribute to the design of complex systems including but not limited to: Active RF circuits integrated transceivers PLL synthesizers mixers switches RF amplifiers oscillators detectors filters A/D and D/A converters microprocessors and FPGAs for space and ground station applications
• Excellent documentation presentation and communication skills

What Makes You Stand Out:

• Experience with Altium or similar EDA tools highdensity mixedsignal PCB design high speed clock trees
• Knowledge of digital communications theory and associated signal processing algorithms for both narrowband and wideband data transmission systems
• Experience in Linux Python and data analysis tools
• Comfortable working in an agile fastpaced environment
• Proven ability to provide solutions to address and unblock dynamic situations
• Understanding of crossteam dependencies including electrical software mechanical thermal structural manufacturing and Space environmental

EAR/ITAR Requirements:

This position requires access to exportcontrolled information and as such employment (or hiring of a contractor) is contingent upon the candidates ability to access all applicable exportcontrolled information without additional export licensing being required by the Bureau of Industry and Security and/or the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls.

Benefits While Working at Planet:

These offerings are dependent on employment type and geographical location based upon applicable law or company policy.

• Comprehensive Medical Dental and Vision plans
• Health Savings Account (HSA) with a company contribution
• Generous Paid Time Off in addition to holidays and companywide days off
• 16 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave
• Remotefriendly work environment
• Wellness Program and Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Home Office Reimbursement
• Monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursement
• Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning
• Equity
• Commuter Benefits (if local to an office)
• Volunteering Paid Time Off

Compensation:

The US base salary range for this fulltime position at the commencement of employment is listed below. Additionally this role might be eligible for discretionary shortterm and longterm incentives (bonus and equity). The final salary range is determined by job related experience skills and location. The range displays our typical hiring range for new hire salaries in US locations only. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

Why we care so much about Belonging.
Were dedicated to helping the whole Planet and to do that we must strive to represent all of it within each of our offices and on all of our teams. Thats why Planet is guided by an ultimate north star of Belongingdreaming big as we approach our ongoing work. If this job intrigues you but youre thinking you might not have all the qualifications please... do apply! At Planet we are looking for wellrounded people from around the world who can contribute to more ways than just what is listed in this job description. We dont just fill positions we aspire to fulfill peoples careers most excited about folks who are motivated by our underlying humanitarian efforts. We are a few orbits around the sun before we get to where we want to be so we hope youre excited to come along for the ride.

EEO statement:
Planet is committed to building a community where everyone belongs and we invite people from all backgrounds to apply. Planet is an equal opportunity employer and committed to providing employment opportunities regardless of race religious creed color national origin ancestry physical disability mental disability medical condition genetic information marital status sex gender gender identity gender expression pregnancy childbirth and breastfeeding age sexual orientation military or veteran status or any other protected classification in accordance with applicable federal state and local laws. Know Your Rights.

Accommodations:
Planet is an inclusive community and we know that everyone has their own needs. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation during the hiring process please reach out to or contact your recruiter with your request. Your message will be confidential and we will be happy to assist you.

Privacy Policy: By clicking Apply Now at the top of this job posting I acknowledge that I have read the Planet Data Privacy Notice for California Staff Members and Applicants and hereby consent to the collection processing use and storage of my personal information as described therein.

Privacy Policy (European Applicants): By clicking Apply Now at the top of this job posting I acknowledge that I have read the Candidate Privacy Notice GDPR Planet Labs Europe and hereby consent to the collection processing use and storage of my personal information as described therein.