Senior Thermal Engineer, Mission Electronics

About the Team

The Thermal Engineering team enables Andurils rapid hardware development cycle by ensuring advanced defense systems perform reliably in demanding real-world environments. The team works across high-power tightly integrated products where thermal architecture analysis testing and cross-functional design decisions directly affect product performance reliability and mission success.

About the Role

We are looking for a Senior Thermal Engineer to work in Costa Mesa CA focused on the thermal design of electronic assemblies. You will own the thermal architecture of these across products spanning air vehicles (fixed wing & rotorcraft) maritime and ground systems and wearables/body-worn devices and you will bring an in-depth understanding of heat transfer and fluid dynamics to bear on hardware that must survive real operational environments.

What Youll Do

• Own the thermal design and analysis of electronicsfrom board and component level up through enclosures and full assembliesfor products across air vehicles maritime and ground systems and wearables/body-worn devices.
• Use first principles as the basis for every decision and discern the right level of analysis to apply. Execute hand calculations spreadsheets and MATLAB/Python first-order models to inform the path forward before jumping into detailed design.
• Define thermal architecture and heat-rejection pathsconduction natural and forced convection cold plates heat sinks heat pipes thermal interface materials and coatingsto keep components within junction and touch-temperature limits across demanding environments.
• Establish hot cold and edge-case operating conditions for each platform based on industry standards and intended use accounting for altitude and flight envelopes on air vehicles salt fog and humidity in maritime environments solar load and enclosed cabinets on ground systems and human-contact and comfort limits on wearables.
• Work with electrical mechanical and systems engineers to characterize and document component power dissipation under different operating modes.
• Communicate the pros and cons of system and packaging architectures with respect to thermal considerations and drive trade studies that balance thermal margin against size weight and power.
• Own the thermal FEA/CFD models and predict system performance. Define red/yellow design limits for test and operation.
• Define and execute prototype builds and tests to verify thermal designs (do CAD select sensors and DAQ equipment post-process data summarize results etc.).
• Present thermal status at formal reviews internally and with customers. Provide a clear understanding of timelines and technical status.
• Develop internal tools to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of analysis.
• Support failure reviews and root-cause analysis with test data and thermal analysis.

Required Qualifications

• MS or higher degree in mechanical engineering aerospace engineering applied physics or a related field with a focus on heat transfer and fluid dynamics (BS with additional experience considered)
• In-depth understanding of heat transfer and fluid dynamics
• 5 years of experience designing thermal solutions for electronics or integrated hardware products
• Practical experience with electronics cooling and packagingcomponent and board-level thermal management TIMs heat sinks heat pipes cold plates and enclosure heat rejection
• Practical experience designing both passive and active thermal management systems
• Thermal testing experiencesensor selection data acquisition and data post-processing
• Thermal FEA/CFD experienceSTAR-CCM ANSYS Icepak or FloEFD
• CAD experience with Siemens NX or SolidWorks
• Passion for defending the United States and her allies
• Be able to obtain and hold a U.S. Top Secret security clearance

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience developing code in higher-level languages like Python or MATLAB for applications such as lumped-capacitance steady-state and transient analysis
• Experience with thermal design across multiple product classesair vehicles maritime or ground systems and electronics enclosures or wearable/body-worn devices
• Familiarity with defense/aerospace environmental standards (e.g. MIL-STD-810) and thermal derating of electronic components
• Experience with active cooling approaches such as fans TECs liquid cooling or two-phase systems

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience education and/or training critical skills and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Andurils total compensation package. Additionally Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees including:

Benefits

At Anduril we invest in our people. Our comprehensive competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures youre supported in health recovery and whatever comes next.For more information Explore Our Benefits.

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