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Worker Type

Job Description

Summary
AV's Space Technologies team is seeking a Radiation Effects Engineer to support the design, analysis, testing, and qualification of spaceborne electronic components and systems in radiation environments. This role collaborates with electronics design, reliability, and mission assurance teams to ensure spacecraft and payload reliability for diverse mission profiles.

Key Responsibilities
• Define radiation environments for LEO, MEO, GEO, cislunar, and deep-space missions.
• Perform TID, SEE, DDD, and related radiation analyses.
• Lead test planning, execution, and data analysis at proton, heavy-ion, gamma, and neutron facilities.
• Evaluate COTS and radiation-hardened components for mission suitability.
• Develop and implement radiation hardness assurance strategies.
• Support radiation reliability budgeting and mitigation planning.
• Work with design teams on SEL protection, redundancy, shielding, ECC, and architecture-level radiation mitigation.
• Prepare technical reports, design artifacts, and review documentation.
• Participate in design reviews, FRBs, and mission assurance activities.
• Mentor junior engineers in radiation effects and modeling techniques.

Required Qualifications
• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Physics, Nuclear Engineering, or related field.
• 3+ years of experience in radiation effects analysis, testing, or component reliability.
• Experience with radiation test facilities and part-level characterization.
• Familiarity with OMERE, CREME96, SPENVIS, FASTRAD, or similar tools.
• Understanding of/Strong interest to learn SEE mechanisms and semiconductor device physics.
• Strong cross-discipline communication abilities.

• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance.

Preferred Qualifications
• Master's or PhD in a relevant technical discipline.
• Experience with aerospace or DoD mission assurance standards (MIL_STD_883, ECSS, NASA EEE_INST_002).
• FPGA radiation effects background and mitigation experience.
• Shielding modeling or dose-depth analysis experience.
• Experience designing or qualifying electronics for space missions.

• Active U.S. Government clearance preferred.

Additional Information
SpaceTech offers a collaborative engineering culture focused on innovation, mission reliability, and delivering high_performance solutions under challenging environmental conditions.

Physical Demands
• Ability to work in an office and production environment (Constant)
• Required to sit and stand for long periods; talk, hear, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer and telephone keyboard (Frequent)

Clearance Level

The salary range for this role is:

AeroVironment considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the location, the role and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, education/training, and key skills.

ITAR Requirement:

This position requires access to information that is subject to compliance with the International Traffic Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) and/or the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”). In order to comply with the requirements of the ITAR and/or the EAR, applicants must qualify as a U.S. person under the ITAR and the EAR, or a person to be approved for an export license by the governing agency whose technology comes under its jurisdiction. Please understand that any job offer that requires approval of an export license will be conditional on AeroVironment’s determination that it will be able to obtain an export license in a time frame consistent with AeroVironment’s business requirements. A “U.S. person” according to the ITAR definition is a U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident (green card holder), or protected individual such as a refugee or asylee. See 22 CFR § 120.15. Some positions will require current U.S. Citizenship due to contract requirements.

Benefits: AV offers an excellent benefits package including medical, dental vision, 401K with company matching, a 9/80 work schedule and a paid holiday shutdown. For more information about our company benefit offerings please visit: http://www.avinc.com/myavbenefits.

We also encourage you to review our company website at http://www.avinc.com to learn more about us.

Principals only need apply. NO agencies please.

About AV:

AV isn’t for everyone. We hire the curious, the relentless, the mission-obsessed. The best of the best.

We don’t just build defense technology—we redefine what’s possible. As the premier autonomous systems company in the U.S., AV delivers breakthrough capabilities across air, land, sea, space, and cyber. From AI-powered drones and loitering munitions to integrated autonomy and space resilience, our technologies shape the future of warfare and protect those who serve.

Founded by legendary innovator Dr. Paul MacCready, AV has spent over 50 years pushing the boundaries of what unmanned systems can do. Our heritage includes seven platforms in the Smithsonian—but we’re not building history, we’re building what’s next.

If you're ready to build technology that matters—with speed, scale, and purpose—there’s no better place to do it than AV.

We are proud to be an EEO/AA Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/veterans. AeroVironment, Inc. is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer and welcomes all qualified applicants. Qualified applicants will receive fair and impartial consideration without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic data, sexual orientation, gender identity or other legally protected status.

ITAR