Job Description

Position Overview

The Director/Senior Electronics Design Engineer (DSEDE) is leader of the design and development team of the Instrumentation Design Laboratory (IDL) at the University of Kansas. The mission of the IDL is to design and develop custom instruments and laboratory computing systems for research groups in the natural sciences and engineering and has supported the KU Research Mission for more than thirty years.
The DSEDE independently applies advanced knowledge of scientific research and engineering principles and practices to create and maintain hardware/software solutions that support research and instruction at KU. A wide application of methods and concepts from multiple disciplines is required to provide solutions to a wide range of difficult problems.
The DSEDE makes decisions independently on technical problems and methods and devises new approaches to complex problems encountered and ensures that improvements and/or changes are implemented. The DSEDE will act as a technical lead or consultant on various projects while working closely with KU faculty and students. Creativity, foresight and mature judgment are needed.
The DSEDE will participate in the joint design, development, and deployment of instrumentation for international collaborations. Opportunities to teach university courses and/or workshops may arise.
The DSEDE supervises staff and student employees and collaborates with faculty and students. The DSEDE manages all budget-related aspects of the lab.

Job Description

20% Project, System and Circuit Design: Develops the overall system design for state-of-the-art instrumentation in consultation with the faculty and/or students with whom the instrument is being developed, together with the other professional members of the Instrumentation Design Laboratory.

20% Oversight of Laboratory Operations:
Supervise IDL personnel
Schedule and maintain records of Lab Projects
Provide appropriate billing information for generation of monthly invoices and budget control
Work with Physics & Astronomy and the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences on evaluation of the rate structure
Prepare quarterly reports for Physics & Astronomy
Prepare an annual report for Physics & Astronomy and the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
20% Project Implementation:
Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Design: Designs and lays out the PCBs or supervises other staff members doing so using advanced concepts of layout design
Low-level Programming: Develops drivers for hardware devices. Develops efficient Field-Programmable Gate Array code. A very good understanding of C, assembly languages, and Hardware Description Languages is required as well as an understanding of the FPGA architecture.
User experience design and implementation.
15% Multi-institutional Project Development: Participates in multi-institutional planning. Travel for development and for deployment (for example, to other institutions, other labs, CERN, and the South Pole) is necessary.

15% Exploration: Monitor and test new technologies for future projects.

10% Other: Duties as required for the mission of the Instrumentation Design Laboratory. Examples include working with and mentoring students and developing relationships with potential customers inside and outside KU.

Required Qualifications

MS degree in Electrical Engineering, Physics, or related discipline with at least one year of experience in electronics design OR BS degree in Electrical Engineering, Physics, or related discipline with greater than five years experience in electronics design.
Previous experience completing electronic design or other relevant projects using creativity, inventiveness and attention to detail as demonstrated by submission of application materials.
Two years of experience leading/supervising a technical team.
Experience in modern analog, digital and missed-signal electronics.
Two years experience with high-performance PCB design.
One year of experience with HDLs/firmware, including coding, simulating or optimizing FPGAs and CPLDs