{"id":1708848,"url":"https://alion.io/job/general-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer","title":"Senior Principal Electrical-Optics Engineer","company":{"id":1836162,"name":"General Dynamics Mission Systems","domain":"gdmissionsystems.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/gdmissionsystems-com","size_band":"1001-5000","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"iCIMS","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":100,"open_postings":4,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":13,"computed_at":"2026-10-30T05:48:23Z"}},"role":"Hardware","role_family":"Hardware","seniority":"lead","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Annapolis Junction, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":221454,"max":234000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":234000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":10,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"C++","optional":false},{"name":"HyperLynx","optional":false},{"name":"LTspice","optional":false},{"name":"MATLAB","optional":false},{"name":"Mentor Xpedition","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-02T16:22:29Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-02","last_verified_at":"2026-10-30T21:48:22Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":28,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":28},"description":"Basic Qualifications\nRequires a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, or a related Science, Engineering, Technology or Mathematics field. Also requires 10+ years of job-related experience, or a Master's degree plus 8 years of job-related experience.\nCLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS: Ability to obtain a Department of Defense TS/SCI with Polygraph security clearance is required at time of hire. Applicants selected will be subject to a U.S. Government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information. Due to the nature of work performed within our facilities, U.S. citizenship is required.\nDirect experience designing and troubleshooting mixed-signal PWBs that combine precision analog, switching or linear power, digital logic, FPGAs, memories, and high-speed interfaces.\nDirect, relevant experience designing high-speed digital hardware and interfaces operating at frequencies up to 10 GHz.\nDirect experience with electro-optical hardware, including cameras, lasers, fiber-optic communications equipment, optical transceivers, optical attenuators, or optical switching.\nRecent hands-on use of PCB design, simulation, and analysis tools such as Xpedition, HyperLynx, LTspice, MATLAB, or closely comparable tools.\nPractical experience with schematic capture, PCB design review, design for test, design for manufacturability, board bring-up, laboratory troubleshooting, test procedures, and laboratory instrumentation.\nAbility to document hardware architectures and ICDs spanning electrical, optical, mechanical, FPGA/firmware, and software interfaces, and to brief management and customers at an appropriate level of detail.\nDemonstrated ability to distinguish technical symptoms from root causes and drive complex hardware and system issues to evidence-based resolution.\nResponsibilities for this Position\nROLE AND POSITION OBJECTIVES:\nWe are seeking a senior electrical engineer to design, integrate, test, and sustain Free-Space Optical (FSO) communications systems, modem hardware, and associated development and test equipment. This role spans board-level circuit design through system architecture, customer engagement, and technical leadership.\nWhat You Will Do\nArchitect and design printed wiring boards and electro-optical systems for FSO communications products, modems, and test equipment, including COTS components, precision analog circuits, power supplies, FPGAs, memories, high-speed digital interfaces, and optical/network components.\nIntegrate cameras, lasers, fiber-optic links, SFPs, variable optical attenuators, optical switches, and associated monitoring and control hardware into reliable end-to-end systems.\nDefine electrical, optical, mechanical, firmware, and software interfaces; produce reviewable hardware architectures, ICDs, design analyses, schematics, test plans, and verification evidence.\nPerform circuit simulation and analysis, including tolerance, signal-integrity, power-integrity, thermal, and relevant worst-case electrical, timing, power, environmental, and tolerance analyses.\nUse current design and analysis tools, including Siemens/Mentor Xpedition, HyperLynx, LTspice, MATLAB, and comparable analog, digital, and electro-optical tools.\nLead hardware bring-up, integration, troubleshooting, root-cause analysis, and corrective action at board and system levels.\nDevelop test approaches, fixtures, and automated test capabilities; use Python, C, C++, or comparable languages for test automation, instrument control, data collection, and engineering analysis.\nSupport proposals and customer engagement by defining technical approaches, risks, estimates, requirements, and user needs before Performance Work Specification (PWS) definition.\nMentor engineers, delegate work intentionally, and share critical technical knowledge across multiple concurrent programs.\nRequired Qualifications\n10+ years of progressively responsible electrical-engineering experience and ownership of complex board- or system-level designs.\nDirect experience designing and troubleshooting mixed-signal PWBs that combine precision analog, switching or linear power, digital logic, FPGAs, memories, and high-speed interfaces.\nDirect, relevant experience designing high-speed digital hardware and interfaces operating at frequencies up to 10 GHz.\nDirect experience with electro-optical hardware, including cameras, lasers, fiber-optic communications equipment, optical transceivers, optical attenuators, or optical switching.\nRecent hands-on use of PCB design, simulation, and analysis tools such as Xpedition, HyperLynx, LTspice, MATLAB, or closely comparable tools.\nPractical experience with schematic capture, PCB design review, design for test, design for manufacturability, board bring-up, laboratory troubleshooting, test procedures, and laboratory instrumentation.\nAbility to document hardware architectures and ICDs spanning electrical, optical, mechanical, FPGA/firmware, and software interfaces, and to brief management and customers at an appropriate level of detail.\nDemonstrated ability to distinguish technical symptoms from root causes and drive complex hardware and system issues to evidence-based resolution.\nIdeal Candidate\nMoves comfortably between system architecture, schematic review, simulation, bench measurement, and failure analysis while retaining the mission need and system-level context.\nUnderstands that electro-optical performance depends on optics, analog electronics, power quality, thermal behavior, digital interfaces, control software, packaging, and test methods.\nIdentifies technical risks, incomplete requirements, weak interfaces, and verification gaps early; resolves them using disciplined analysis and measured evidence.\nDesigns for manufacturability, serviceability, testability, and sustainment, not only nominal laboratory performance.\nCommunicates concisely with leadership and customers, leads with the decision, status, risk, or recommendation, and provides circuit-level detail when asked.\nIs forward-leaning and self-directed, shares knowledge freely, mentors others, delegates effectively, and collaborates across multiple programs without waiting for detailed tasking.\nPreferred Qualifications\nExperience with FSO communications systems, modem hardware, optical networking, RF/optical data links, AMD/Xilinx FPGA-based hardware, or high-speed interfaces.\nExperience with commercial optical/network test equipment such as Spirent, Viavi, Polatis, optical power meters, BER testers, or spectrum analyzers.\nExperience in defense, aerospace, government, or another mission-critical product-development environment; leading formal design reviews; or contributing to proposals, basis-of-estimate development, and customer technical exchanges.\nOur Commitment to You:\nAn exciting career path with opportunities for continuous learning and development.\nResearch oriented work, alongside award winning teams developing practical solutions for our nation’s security\nFlexible schedules with every other Friday off work, if desired (9/80 schedule)\nCompetitive benefits, including 401k matching, flex time off, paid parental leave, healthcare benefits, health & wellness programs, employee resource and social groups, and more\nSee more at gdmissionsystems.com/careers/why-work-for-us/benefits\nWorkplace Options:\nThis position is On-site with flex optionsWhile on-site, you will be a part of the Annapolis Junction Team\nSalary Note\nThis estimate represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors (geographic location, etc.). Actual pay may vary. This job posting will remain open until the position is filled.Combined Salary Range\nUSD $221,454.00 - USD $234,000.00 /Yr.Company Overview\nGeneral Dynamics Mission Systems (GDMS) engineers a diverse portfolio of high technology solutions, products and services that enable customers to successfully execute missions across all domains of operation. With a global team of 12,000+ top professionals, we partner with the best in industry to expand the bounds of innovation in the defense and scientific arenas. Given the nature of our work and who we are, we value trust, honesty, alignment and transparency. We offer highly competitive benefits and pride ourselves in being a great place to work with a shared sense of purpose. You will also enjoy a flexible work environment where contributions are recognized and rewarded. If who we are and what we do resonates with you, we invite you to join our high-performance team!\nEqual Opportunity Employer / Individuals with Disabilities / Protected Veterans","description_format":"text","description_chars":8592,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":10,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":true,"languages":[]},"benefits":["401k plan","Continuous learning","Flexible schedule","Parental leave","Wellness"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Military","National Security","Defense Manufacturing"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-02T16:22:29Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":23,"band":"cold","label":"Long shot","p_open":1,"p_active":0.666,"p_room":0.35,"age_days":27,"expected_fill_days":13,"reasons":["conf:1","velocity","win:tail","comp:brand"],"computed_at":"2026-10-30T05:48:23Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":234000,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/general-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/general-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-30T23:48:48Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":15351,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-31T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":1836162},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=1836162"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fgeneral-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fgeneral-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fgeneral-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/general-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fgeneral-dynamics-mission-systems-senior-principal-electrical-optics-engineer"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":1708848}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"gdmissionsystems.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":1708848},"note":"people open to offers who fit this vacancy"}],"note":"The same data through MCP tools: https://alion.io/mcp/open needs no sign-in (compact searches, postings, people); https://alion.io/mcp with an Alion account has everything. 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