Senior Validation Engineer, Electro-Optical Devices

PsiQuantum’s mission is to build the first useful quantum computers—machines capable of delivering the breakthroughs the field has long promised. Since our founding in 2016, our singular focus has been to build and deploy million-qubit, fault-tolerant quantum systems. 

Quantum computers harness the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems that even the most advanced supercomputers or AI systems will never reach. Their impact will span energy, pharmaceuticals, finance, agriculture, transportation, materials, and other foundational industries. 

Our architecture and approach is based on silicon photonics. By leveraging the advanced semiconductor manufacturing industry—including partners like Globa

The Senior Validation Engineer will be responsible for developing and implementing the methods and techniques to validate the performance of various electro-optical subsystems, drive measures in the Engineering environment, debug issues, and supervise larger quantity builds in manufacturing

lFoundries—we use the same high-volume processes that already produce billions of chips for telecom and consumer electronics. Photonics offers natural advantages for scale: photons don’t feel heat, are immune to electromagnetic interference, and integrate with existing cryogenic cooling and standard fiber-optic infrastructure. 

In 2024, PsiQuantum announced government-funded projects to support the build-out of our first utility-scale quantum computers in Brisbane, Australia, and Chicago, Illinois. These initiatives reflect a growing recognition that quantum computing will be strategically and economically defining—and that now is the time to scale. 

PsiQuantum also develops the algorithms and software needed to make these systems commercially valuable. Our application, software, and industry teams work directly with leading Fortune 500 companies—including Lockheed Martin, Mercedes-Benz, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Mitsubishi Chemical—to prepare quantum solutions for real-world impact. 

Quantum computing is not an extension of classical computing. It represents a fundamental shift—and a path to mastering challenges that cannot be solved any other way. The potential is enormous, and we have a clear path to make it real. 

Come join us. 

Job Summary:

The Senior Validation Engineer will be responsible for developing and implementing the methods and techniques to validate the performance of various electro-optical subsystems, drive measures in the Engineering environment, debug issues, and supervise larger quantity builds in manufacturing

Responsibilities:

• Review electro-optical design from simple PCBA + Optical assemblies to more complex designs where multiple PCBA & optical parts work together. Including integration of optics, electronics, firmware, software, and thermal design.
• Identify key parameters to measure and methods for the specific measurements, in collaboration with the Design team.
• Write the full validation plan for the characterization of new designs, estimate time to complete measures on large quantities of devices.
• Design and run experiments to validate design functionality and performance: from building laboratory setups comprised of light sources, detector, switches; function generators, oscilloscopes, etc., to developing software scrips and algorithms to collect relevant data, perform data analysis and extract key performance parameters.
• Own the validation effort: supervise the measures, provide reports with expected yield indications for the operation team. Identify issues, provide detailed descriptions and help identify root cause, enable design and/or process engineer to identify fixes. Have a high awareness of milestones and impact of delay on overall program.
• Work with operations team / manufacturing to review build data and yield indication.

Experience/Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or above in Engineering or physical science with 8+ years of industry experience, relevant to validating and testing optical systems.
  Experience working with optical and/or electrical test equipment such as power meters, optical backscatter reflectometers (OBR), optical spectrum analyzer (OSA), Oscilloscopes, function generators (AWG), vector network analyzer (VNA).
  Experience with high-speed electro-optical devices and test equipment, such as electro-optical modulators, RF detectors, pulsed lasers, and optical sampling oscilloscopes.
  Experience developing test methods and optimization, tuning/calibration algorithms.
  Ability to understand and write scripts to communicate and control instruments.
• Experience with Python is preferred.
  Experience with EDVT & Fast Fail methodology.
• Familiarity with programming CPUs to interface with FPGA's is a plus.

PsiQuantum provides equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. PsiQuantum does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, military or veteran status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable laws.

Note: PsiQuantum will only reach out to you using an official PsiQuantum email address and will never ask you for bank account information as part of the interview process. Please report any suspicious activity to [email protected].

We are not accepting unsolicited resumes from employment agencies.

Base pay is one part of the total compensation package. Full-time roles are eligible for equity and benefits. Our compensation ranges reflect the cost of labor across multiple U.S. geographic markets, and we pay based on defined geographic zones. This position may be filled within one of the following U.S. geographic zones, each with its own salary range.

Actual compensation may vary outside of these ranges and is dependent on various factors including, but not limited to, a candidate's qualifications, relevant education and training, competencies, experience, geographic location, business needs, and internal equity. Your recruiter can share more details about the salary range applicable to your location during the hiring process.  

• Zone 1 - Bay Area and NYC 

• Zone 2 - Examples include Los Angeles and Washington DC 

• Zone 3 - Examples include Austin, Chicago, and Sacramento 

• Zone 4 - Examples include Nashville and Phoenix/Tempe and many remote locations 

This position includes the following benefits: competitive health coverage for you and your dependents, 401(k) with company match, equity grants, access to financial wellness tools and planning resources, wellness benefits, family support programs, life and disability insurance, paid leave programs, company-designated paid holidays, discretionary time off (DTO), and an end-of-year company shutdown. Some of these benefits have eligibility requirements and may vary based on location, role, or employment status. Many of these benefits are subsidized or fully paid for by the company. 

The estimated annual base salary range for this role is: 

Zone 1

$176,500—$207,400 USD

Zone 2

$158,900—$186,700 USD

Zone 3

$141,200—$165,900 USD

Zone 4

$123,600—$145,200 USD