Senior Embedded Engineer

nou Systems, Inc. (nSI) is now officially a 100% ESOP company! We value teamwork and collaboration, and this transition allows us to take that commitment to a new level. nSI empowers our customers by supplying products, services, and expertise with powerful, data driven insights that transform defense systems and improve capabilities.

We are pleased to announce the opening for an Senior Embedded Engineer, who will join our Advanced Sensing Area in-person in our Huntsville, Alabama office and become part of our rapidly growing technology company operating in missile defense, cybersecurity, test range modernization, biotechnology, and space control marketspaces. You will be part of a team known for turning research concepts into working prototypes quickly, staying hands-on from design through test.

This is a broad, hands-on role that functions at the intersection of hardware and software. You will own embedded work from end to end including defining the architecture, designing the board, writing firmware and programmable logic, establishing the hardware, and verifying it works as intended. The prototypes we build are meant to address problems at speed, but they are built with the discipline and strong systems engineering rigor. Because you will support a range of programs across our team, the problems change, and so do the platforms..

Responsibilities: 

• You will define embedded system architectures for prototype hardware, developing and allocating requirements, performing trade studies, and selecting processors, FPGAs, and components to meet size, weight, power, and performance needs.
• You will independently own embedded engineering tasks and work packages, making sound judgments about assumptions, design margins, and technical risk, and validating your results before others rely on them.
• You will develop FPGA designs in VHDL or Verilog/SystemVerilog, including writing RTL, building simulation testbenches, achieving timing closure, and integrating vendor IP cores and high-speed interfaces.
• You will design printed circuit boards from schematic capture through layout, including component selection, power distribution, signal integrity, and design for manufacturability, and will work with fabrication and assembly vendors to get boards built.
• You will develop embedded software and firmware in C and C++ for microcontrollers, processors, and SoC platforms, including device drivers, bare-metal, RTOS, or embedded Linux applications, and the interfaces between the processor and programmable logic.
• You will bring up and debug new hardware in the lab, using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, JTAG, and in-system debug tools to troubleshoot to root cause across the board, the firmware, and the FPGA logic.
• You will integrate embedded hardware with sensors, RF front ends, data converters, and larger systems, implementing interfaces such as Ethernet, PCIe, SPI, I2C, and UART.
• You will plan and execute test and verification of prototype hardware, writing test plans and procedures, developing Python tools for test automation and data analysis, and documenting assumptions, methods, results, and limitations for internal stakeholders and customers.
• You will iterate, using test results and lessons learned in the lab to refine your designs, retire technical risk, and mature prototypes toward the next stage of development, maintaining the configuration control, documentation, and build quality needed for hardware to transition.
• You will use approved AI-enabled tools to accelerate coding, verification, analysis, and documentation, validating the output and following security and data-handling rules.
• You will brief technical findings to internal teams, customers, and working-level forums, and will help mentor early-career engineers in the lab.
• You will contribute to proposals, RFI responses, technical white papers, and new research ideas, and will help scope new embedded work as opportunities arise.

Basic Qualifications:

• You must have a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related STEM field.
• You will need 5 years of full-time professional experience in embedded systems, FPGA, or electronics hardware engineering.
• Experience with schematic capture and PCB layout for multilayer and high-speed designs, such as with Altium.
• You will need proficiency in C or C++ for embedded development.
• You must possess or be able to obtain an active Secret clearance.
• You must be a U.S. citizen to be eligible for this position.

Lacking any one of these disqualifies you from this job.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• Experience carrying embedded designs from requirements through board fabrication, bring-up, integration, and test.
• Experience in a research and development or rapid prototyping environment, where requirements evolve and designs iterate quickly.
• Experience with AMD/Xilinx or Intel/Altera FPGA toolchains, such as Vivado, Vitis, or Quartus, and SoC platforms such as Zynq UltraScale+ or RFSoC.
• Experience with FPGA verification methods, including self-checking testbenches, SystemVerilog, UVM, or cocotb.
• Experience with high-speed interfaces such as JESD204B/C, PCIe, gigabit Ethernet, or DDR memory.
• Experience implementing signal processing in FPGA fabric, such as filtering, FFTs, or digital down conversion, including with HLS or MATLAB/Simulink HDL Coder.
• Experience with embedded Linux (PetaLinux or Yocto), RTOS, or bare-metal development.
• Proficiency in Python for test automation and data analysis.
• Experience with signal integrity, power integrity, and thermal considerations in board design.
• Familiarity with RF, radar, electronic warfare, PNT, or software defined radio systems.
• Experience with version control and configuration management practices, such as Git.
• Experience working in a DoD or defense contracting environment, such as missile defense, space, or test range programs.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, including briefing technical findings and limitations to customers and non-specialists.

nou (pronounced ‘new’) Systems:

Since its founding in 2012, nou Systems has built a reputation for excellence in innovative engineering, prototype development, and technical and professional services in multiple markets, including missile defense, cybersecurity, test range modernization, and space control. Our diverse and highly skilled team delivers state-of-the-art products from concepts and prototypes to fully developed and integrated solutions.

We offer significant advancement and personal career development opportunities within our dynamic high-tech company. Our culture is firmly established in treating our employees like family.

Benefits of working at nSI

nou Systems, Inc. offers a comprehensive, total rewards package that includes competitive compensation and diverse benefits that reflect our company culture of service, excellence, and a supportive work environment. Benefits may vary based on status but the majority of our positions include the following:

• Competitive Wages*
• Medical, Rx, Dental & Vision Insurance
• Medical plan with Health Savings Account eligibility
• Company-funded Life, Short-Term & Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Personal Time Off, Vacation, and Paid Holidays
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Norton LifeLock
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Personal Development, Technical Learning Opportunities, & Lunch-n-Learns
• Corporate Sponsored Events & Community Outreach

*Final compensation for this position is determined by a variety of factors, such as a candidate’s relevant work experience, skills, certifications, and geographic location.

nSI is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Employment opportunities at nSI are based upon a candidate’s qualifications and capabilities to perform the essential functions of a particular job and are free from discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law. For our complete EEO/AA and Pay Transparency statement, please visit www.nou-systems.com/workingatnou. U.S. citizenship is required for most positions.