{"id":4284961,"url":"https://alion.io/job/meta-research-scientist-intern-diffractive-optics-phd","title":"Research Scientist Intern, Diffractive Optics (PhD)","company":{"id":20,"name":"Meta","domain":"meta.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/meta","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Career sitemap","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":80,"open_postings":229,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.799,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":41,"computed_at":"2026-11-12T10:38:37Z"}},"role":"AI/ML","role_family":"AI/ML","seniority":"intern","employment_type":"internship","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Redmond, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":2,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"C++","optional":false},{"name":"Context Engineering","optional":false},{"name":"MATLAB","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-13T18:32:14Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-13","last_verified_at":"2026-11-13T21:30:47Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":0,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":0},"description":"Meta Reality Labs brings together a world-class team of researchers, developers, and engineers to create the future of virtual and augmented reality, which together will become as universal and essential as smartphones and personal computers are today. And just as personal computers have done over the past 45 years, AR and VR will ultimately change everything about how we work, play, and connect.We are seeking a Research Scientist Intern with a background in Nanophotonics to join our research team. The intern will contribute to developing the next generation of AR/VR displays by focusing on advanced simulations and experimental optics prototyping. This is an excellent opportunity to collaborate with leading researchers and contribute to research with direct application to future product development.\nOur internships are twelve (12) to twenty-four (24) weeks long and we have various start dates throughout the year.\nResponsibilities\nCollaborate with researchers and cross-functional partners, including communicating research plans, progress, and results effectively Contribute to product research or development, and present findings that can be applied to future Meta products Develop next generation AR displays or components with an emphasis on advanced simulations, and working toward experimental optics prototyping with the team to prove new concepts and understand the factors that impact them Collaborate with the larger Meta Reality Labs Products team to explore novel solution spaces for AR devices Explore the application of at least one of the following to AR displays: wave optics, polarization optics, diffraction optics, interference phenomenon, metasurfaces\nQualifications\nCurrently has or is in the process of obtaining a PhD in the field of Optical Science, Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a relevant technical field Proficiency with at least one programming language (e.g. C++, MATLAB, Python, etc.) Must obtain work authorization in country of employment at the time of hire, and maintain ongoing work authorization during employment Intent to return to full-time degree program after completion of the internship Experience working and communicating cross functionally in a team environment 2+ years of experience with optical simulation methods such as FDFD, FDTD, FEM, RCWA, FMM, etc 2+ years of experience using photonic modeling software such as Lumerical, COMSOL, CST, or other custom codebase 2+ years of experience developing or implementing various algorithms for optimization of optical devices, including heuristic algorithms, adjoint variable gradient based methods, inverse design, or neural networks Proven track record of achieving significant results as demonstrated by first-authored publications in leading journal families such as Nature, Science, Physical Review, Optica, ACS, SPIE, IEEE, or at conferences such as CLEO, SPIE Photonics West, FiO+LS, or similar as well as grants, fellowships, patents, etc Demonstrated ability to integrate AI tools to optimize/redesign workflows and drive measurable impact (e.g., efficiency gains, quality improvements) Experience adhering to and implementing responsible, ethical AI practices (e.g., risk assessment, bias mitigation, quality and accuracy reviews) Demonstrated ongoing AI skill development (e.g., prompt/context engineering, agent orchestration) and staying current with emerging AI 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