Senior FPGA Engineer, Spectrum Monitoring

Spire Global is a space-to-cloud analytics company that owns and operates the largest multi-purpose constellation of satellites. Its proprietary data and algorithms provide the most advanced maritime, aviation, and weather tracking in the world. In addition to its constellation, Spire’s data infrastructure includes a global ground station network and 24/7 operations that provide real-time global coverage of every point on Earth.

The Advanced Signal Processing Group (ASPG) is part of Spire’s office of the CTO.  This is a small, tightly knit, highly collaborative team spread across the world.  Spire owns and operates over 120 nanosatellites constantly collecting RF activity across the spectrum and this team has the sole responsibility of monitoring, detecting, geolocating, and providing other actional near real-time insights.  Detection of Illegal fishing, trafficking, and GNSS jammer detection and geolocation are all daily applications one can look forward to in this role.

The Role:

As a Senior FPGA Engineer, you will translate, augment, and implement prototyped algorithms into productionized ideas for use on-orbit.  You will work in a small team that will iteratively expedite the design and validation of FPGA-based solutions meant to actualize real-time processing onboard our spectrum monitoring capabilities.  You will utilize SDR concepts and architecture with embedded linux integration.

You will have the responsibility to ensure that we deliver high-quality, low-latency services and products and the freedom to pursue novel, high-impact applications. In collaboration with our algorithms and payload teams, you will implement algorithms for automating, monitoring, and delivering high impact RF insights over the globe and spectrum. Instead of your ideas and efforts sitting on a shelf or hidden in theory, you will see and experience them actually working in space within months of joining Spire.

Specific Responsibilities:

• Working with DSP engineers to implement algorithms for processing various types of digitally modulated signals for detection and geolocation purposes
• Working with SW engineers to offload CPU intensive tasks to FPGA
• Working in a multidisciplinary environment to integrate, test and debug FPGA implementations with in-house HW and SW 
• Using simulation and/or hardware-in-the-loop testing to verify correctness and performance of algorithm implementations
• Implementing and testing functionality to interface with embedded software and hardware such as RF front ends, sensors, communication buses and shared memories
• Supporting the on-ground testing campaign through all phases, including test planning, execution, analysis and debugging
• Take responsibility of production operation of ASPG payload systems in space

Basic Qualifications:

• Demonstrated solid experience of FPGA design, implementation (Verilog and/or VHDL and/or HLS) from scratch
• Demonstrated experience of verification, integration of FPGA designs with HW, SW and third party IP blocks and debugging in both HW and simulated environments
• Software development experience in C and/or C++ and Python
• Experience with test equipment such as logic analyzers, oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers, VSGs, VNAs etc.
• Xilinx SoCs and tooling, including Vivado High-Level Synthesis
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• 5+ years of professional experience required
• 3+ years experience in hardware description languages such as Verilog or VHDL

Standout Qualifications:

• Experience using Docker, ECS or Linux Containers in a production environment
• Embedded systems development, particularly targeting Linux on ARM-based platforms
• Software-Defined Radio experience (e.g. GNU Radio, USRP)
• Familiarity with Yocto, board support packages, device trees, kernel drivers
• Experience with detection, classification, and estimation techniques and theory
• Experience with satellite communication systems, including environmental and component reliability requirements
• Experience interacting with common SDR components and high-speed FPGA interfaces

Spire is Global and our success draws upon the diverse viewpoints, skills and experiences of our employees. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or veteran status.

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