At a glance
- Experience
- 1+ years experience
- Location
- Bastrop, TX
About the role
- As a Materials Engineer for thin films at SpaceX, you will partner with solar cell process engineering on PECVD-deposited films used in insourced cell manufacturing.
- You will characterize films, connect deposition conditions to material properties, support qualifications, and help lock in durable improvements to cell performance, yield, and cost.
Responsibilities
- Partner with solar cell process engineering on PECVD thin films, supporting materials characterization, film-property understanding, and production readiness
- Execute materials characterization and analysis of plasma-deposited films; correlate process conditions with thickness, refractive index, composition, lifetime, uniformity, and cell electrical/optical performance, and recommend next steps
- Build proficiency with thin-film materials, PECVD-relevant vacuum and plasma concepts, and lab/metrology methods; consult with senior engineers on higher-impact decisions while independently completing straightforward materials work
- Support DOEs and process trials: define materials measurements, collect high-quality data, and help interpret results with process engineering
- Support root cause analysis for film, interface, contamination, and yield issues: design experiments, execute failure analysis with characterization partners, and drive assigned corrective actions to completion with no loose ends
- Help define film material requirements, specifications, sampling plans, and acceptance criteria in partnership with process, quality, and production engineering
- Document materials results, specifications, and best practices; communicate status, risks, and recommendations clearly to cross-functional partners and, with support as needed, to leadership
- Identify opportunities to improve film materials performance, yield, cost, and manufacturability; raise issues early with proposed solutions rather than problems alone
- Support qualification of precursors, consumables, and film stacks, and production troubleshooting on the manufacturing floor; follow through until work is complete and understood
- Champion a culture of safety and quality in all vacuum, plasma, chemical/gas handling, lab, and production support activities
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in materials science, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, physics, or a STEM discipline
- 1+ years of professional experience with thin films, PECVD or vacuum-deposited coatings, or semiconductor/PV materials
- Willingness to travel to other SpaceX sites and/or vendors as needed (up to 25%)
- Ability to lift up to 25 lbs unassisted
- Ability to stand/walk for extended periods in the lab and on the manufacturing floor
- Willingness to work extended hours and weekends as needed to support manufacturing, tool bring-up, and critical milestones
- Must be able to wear appropriate PPE for lab, vacuum, and manufacturing environments, including work around pyrophoric, toxic, and flammable process gases
- Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. lawful permanent resident, Refugee, Asylee, or eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State under ITAR regulations
Preferred qualifications
- Master’s degree or PhD in materials science, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, physics, or a STEM discipline
- Hands-on experience with PECVD-deposited films in semiconductor or solar cell manufacturing
- Experience working closely with process engineering on deposition, film qualification, or production materials issues
- Familiarity with thin-film and solar-cell metrology such as spectroscopic ellipsometry, reflectance, FTIR, minority-carrier lifetime (QSSPC/PL), SEM-EDS, XPS, four-point probe, and optical inspection
- Working knowledge of film growth, precursor chemistry, plasma/vacuum processing, and how film properties couple to solar-cell passivation and optics
- Experience supporting structured root cause analysis and converting findings into material or process recommendations
- Experience working in a high-volume manufacturing or fab environment and partnering with process, quality, and production teams
- Comfortable with data analysis (Python, JMP, MATLAB, or equivalent) to correlate process, metrology, and electrical results
Workplace
- Willingness to travel to other SpaceX sites and/or vendors as needed (up to 25%)
Skills
- PECVD
- Thin Films
- Vacuum-deposited Coatings
- Semiconductor/PV Materials
- Spectroscopic Ellipsometry
- Reflectance
- FTIR
- QSSPC/PL
- SEM-EDS
- XPS
- Four-point Probe
- Python
Show all 14 skills
- JMP
- MATLAB
