Sr Embedded DSP Engineer - High Performance Signal Processing

The Sr Embedded DSP Engineer will develop advanced RF sensing capabilities for Mach's autonomous defense platforms, focusing on counter-UAV radar systems and RF seekers. The role involves designing radar signal-processing algorithms and implementing them as high-performance, low-latency embedded software on high-performance processors. You will own capabilities across the full development lifecycle, from mathematical modeling and algorithm prototyping to hardware integration and system-level validation. This role requires close collaboration with RF, FPGA, hardware, and GNC engineers to ensure successful development of mission-critical radar systems.

Responsibilities

• Radar signal processing: Develop high performance radar and RF sensing signal processing software, including FFT processing, beamforming and detection on high performance embedded systems, to detect and track targets with high accuracy/resolution while meeting strict latency, memory and power constraints and update rate requirements.
• Modeling & simulation: Develop radar models and simulation tools to prototype candidate algorithms and simulate the performance of the radar system and generate test vectors to validate the accuracy of the radar system.
• Firmware development: Write highly efficient, well-tested production code in C/C++ across platforms ranging from lower power MCUs to high-performance multi-core processors.
• Algorithm and software validation: Develop unit, functional and lab tests to validate the numerical accuracy, real-time performance of the individual software modules and end-to-end signal processing chain.
• Hardware co-design: Work with hardware engineers on component selection and optimal hardware-software trade-offs (performance, power, form factor and cost).
• RF calibration & seeker optimization: Develop automated calibration methods and software for measuring, storing, and applying RF signal-chain corrections. Use calibration and signal processing to maximize end-to-end sensor performance.
• Testing and reliability: Own embedded software quality and reliability and signal processing chain performance by proactively identifying, documenting/tracking and fixing issues to maintain the high performance of Mach’s radar systems.
• Project planning: Contribute to project planning, including communicating risks/blockers and manage engineering trade-offs.
• Documentation: Author clear software specifications, software architecture designs and testing procedures to support manufacturing and scalability.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Software Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, System Engineering, or a related field.
• Experience: 5+ years of experience developing production signal processing software for radar, RF sensing, EW signal processing, wireless or similarly demanding real-time systems.
• Signal processing fundamentals: Strong knowledge of digital signal processing, statistical signal processing, estimation, detection theory, or related discipline.
• Algorithm development: Ability to identify and translate mathematical models into implementable algorithms that meet system requirements and performance.
• Modeling and analysis: Proficiency with Python, MATLAB, or similar tools for algorithm development, simulation, recorded-data analysis, visualization, and test-vector generation.
• Languages: Proficiency in low level C/C++ for embedded systems with the ability to write clean, well-tested, and efficient code.
• Environments: Proven experience developing for one or more embedded processing architectures, such as microcontrollers, DSPs, SIMD/vector processors, or heterogeneous multicore SoCs.
• Real-time optimization: Ability to profile and optimize the performance of signal processing algorithms to meet real-time software constraints and achieve optimal radar system performance.
• Hardware: Ability to read schematics and bring-up new boards and processors, including bring-up peripherals/drivers and embedded code from scratch.
• Communication protocols: Experience using standard device-to-device protocols (SPI, I2C) and GPIO to control/calibrate RF signal chains and interface with customer platforms.
• Testing: Ability to debug, test and validate embedded software using functional tests, logic/protocol analyzers and lab tests to ensure the functionality of embedded software.
• Execution: Strong grasp of full software development life cycle and ability to execute and thrive in a fast-paced, high-iteration environment, delivering frequent software updates with speed and precision.
• Location: Ability to work 100% on-site at our headquarters in Huntington Beach, CA.

Nice to have

• Radar systems: Experience developing signal processing pipelines for pulse-Doppler radar, phased-array radar, active electronically scanned array systems, radar seekers, counter-UAV sensors, or other RF sensing products.
• Advanced processing: Experience with SIMD/vector programming, multicore processing, hardware accelerators, DMA-based data movement, cache optimization, or heterogeneous processing architectures.
• Embedded platforms: Experience with real-time operating systems, bare-metal development, device drivers, board bring-up, and interfaces such as SPI, I2C, GPIO, Ethernet, or CSI-2.
• Automation/scripting: Proficiency in Python or other high level language for data collection, analysis and presentation of system performance.
• Test equipment: Experience using lab test equipment to test the performance of radar and RF sensing systems.
• Compliance: Knowledge of military, aerospace, or safety-critical software standards (e.g., DO-178C, MISRA C, ASIL).

Benefits

• The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offers may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and training, critical skills, and business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in most offers and are considered part of Mach’s total compensation package. Mach offers benefits such as health insurance, retirement plans, and opportunities for professional development.