Physical Vapor Deposition Researcher — Lead Engineer
Core
Lead the development and optimization of physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes for perovskite photovoltaic cells, from first principles to statistical process control.
Role type
Lead Physical Vapor Deposition Researcher (Materials Engineering)
Builds
Robust PVD processes for perovskite absorber layers, charge-transport layers, and transparent conductive oxides for spaceflight applications.
Domain
Aerospace / Photovoltaics / Vacuum Thin-Film Deposition
Deliverable
production ML models | product features | dashboards & analysis | research | client delivery | infrastructure | physical/clinical work -> physical/clinical work (specifically: physical/clinical work is incorrect here, it is physical/industrial process development)
Deliverable
physical/industrial process development
Required skills
Vacuum thin-film deposition (thermal evaporation, sputtering, co-evaporation), Process physics (nucleation, growth kinetics, film stress), Statistical process control (SPC), DOE campaign design, Vacuum system design and maintenance, Thin-film characterization (XRD, SEM, AFM, XPS, ellipsometry), Recipe design and yield optimization
Preferred skills
Perovskite film deposition, Hybrid sequential deposition methods, TCO deposition (ITO, FTO, AZO), In-situ optical monitoring, Mentoring junior researchers, Perovskite degradation mechanisms, Scaling R&D to larger substrates
Technologies
QCM, Optical reflectometry, Residual gas analysis, XRD, SEM, AFM, XPS, Ellipsometry, 4-point probe, Load-locks, Cryo/turbo pumps
Responsibilities
Develop and optimize PVD processes for perovskite layers; Design deposition recipes for multi-source co-evaporation; Specify and qualify vacuum deposition equipment; Develop in-situ process monitoring and feedback control strategies; Establish statistical process control for critical film properties; Lead DOE campaigns to map process-structure-property relationships; Mentor and direct the work of 2 associate deposition researchers; Analyze film characterization data to correlate process parameters with film quality
Seniority
Senior, hands-on IC with mentorship responsibilities