Senior Avionics Engineer

ABOUT ROCKET LAB Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company delivering responsive launch services, complete spacecraft design and manufacturing, payloads, satellite components, and more – all with the goal of opening access space. The rockets and satellites we build, and launch enable some of the most ambitious and vital space missions globally, supporting scientific exploration, Earth observation and missions to combat climate change, national security, and exciting new technology demonstrations. Our Electron rocket has become the second most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually and has delivered more than 230 satellites to orbit, all while we work to develop Neutron, our upcoming medium-lift, reusable launch vehicle for larger constellation deployment. Our Space Systems business designs and builds our extensive line of satellites, payloads, and their components, including spacecraft that have been selected to support NASA missions to the Moon and Mars and components used on the James Webb Space Telescope. ABOUT SPACE SYSTEMS AT ROCKET LAB: Rocket Lab’s Space Systems team is responsible for every satellite and satellite component made by Rocket Lab: from complete satellites destined for missions to the Moon and Mars, to the individual components and subsystems that make up a satellite like solar panels, flight software, reaction wheels and star trackers, separation systems, radios, and more. Our Space Systems team is made up of engineers and technicians who design, create, and put together our own satellites for missions across the commercial, government, and defense sectors, or who build and assemble satellite hardware and software that supports other satellite missions. ABOUT THE ROLE: The Senior Power Electronics Engineer will lead the design, development, and verification of high-power flight electronics, focusing on ion propulsion power processing units and high-voltage distribution systems. You’ll own projects from concept through production, ensuring robust, efficient, and reliable hardware for space environments. Key responsibilities include designing high-voltage DC-DC converters, precision power distribution units, and custom magnetics, while meeting strict efficiency, thermal, and EMC requirements. Your expertise will guide technical decisions and maintain the integrity of spacecraft avionics across multiple flight programs. WHAT YOU'LL GET TO DO: Own the full development lifecycle of high-reliability, high-voltage power processing units for ion propulsion systems, focusing on advanced power conversion, high-voltage isolation, and precision current/voltage control. Architect and design high-power DC-DC converters and power distribution electronics, ensuring optimal topology selection, effective thermal management, and minimal EMI for mission-critical propulsion applications. Design and prototype vehicle-level high-voltage distribution units and interface modules, ensuring robust circuit protection, arc suppression, and compliance with complex system-level safety and interface requirements. Perform comprehensive electrical analyses, including Worst-Case Analysis (WCA), FIDES, Power Integrity (PI), thermal simulations, and high-voltage stress analysis to ensure mission reliability. Select space-grade high-voltage components for in-orbit applications, addressing radiation tolerance (TID/SEE), corona discharge risks, outgassing, and lead-time risks. Lead the design of complex power electronics, including custom magnetics (transformers, inductors), switching regulator optimization, high-voltage filtering, and high-efficiency power distribution networks. Develop grounding, bonding, and EMI/EMC strategies for high-power integrated avionics suites to ensure electromagnetic compatibility across spacecraft and propulsion systems. Oversee bring-up, "smoke testing," and diagnostic verification of first-article high-voltage flight hardware, performing precision rework and high-voltage diagnostics as needed. D ... (truncated, view full listing at source)