Wet Etch Equipment Engineer, Solar Cells (Starlink)
Core
Own chemical processing equipment (wet chemical texturing and preclean tools) used to manufacture silicon heterojunction solar cells at massive scale for Starlink satellites and Starship missions.
Role type
Senior IC equipment engineer (wet etch/chemical processing)
Builds
High-throughput texturing and preclean equipment for heterojunction silicon solar cell manufacturing
Domain
Aerospace / Solar manufacturing / Semiconductor equipment
Required skills
chemical delivery systems, pumps, filtration, temperature control hardware, robotics/automation, root cause analysis, preventive maintenance, statistical process control, cleanroom safety standards, hazardous chemical handling, equipment reliability engineering, project management
Preferred skills
heterojunction (HJT) silicon solar cell manufacturing, multi-GW fab experience, texturing tool architecture, chemical concentration control, electro-pneumatic robot systems, scaling equipment from pilot to high volume, JMP/Minitab proficiency, failure analysis techniques
Technologies
wet benches, exhaust/abatement systems, chemical delivery systems, pumps, filtration, temperature control, robotics/automation, electro-pneumatic robots, transfer modules
Responsibilities
Install, qualify, maintain, and continuously improve high-throughput texturing and preclean equipment; Drive equipment reliability and uptime to support very large volume production; Develop and execute robust preventive and predictive maintenance strategies; Lead root cause analysis and corrective actions on equipment-related issues; Partner with Process Engineers to implement new process requirements; Evaluate and select next-generation high-throughput texturing tools; Establish equipment performance metrics and implement statistical process control; Ensure all equipment meets cleanroom, safety, and high-reliability manufacturing standards
Seniority
Senior, hands-on IC