Lawrence Berkeley National Lab's (LBNL) Engineering Division has an opening for a Power Supply Electronics Engineer to join the team.

You will be matrixed to the Advanced Light Source (ALS) Synchrotron accelerator complex and will report to the ALS or ALS-U Electrical Engineering and Controls Lead at ALS.

In this exciting role, you will be responsible for overseeing the full system lifecycle of the Power Conversion systems for electro-magnets, whether pulsed or continuous duty and range from tens of Watts to roughly 0.5 MW average. The Power Conversion equipment at ALS is responsible for accurate and low noise DC currents that correlate in like magnetic fields in electro-magnets, all within the framework of beam transport in an accelerator system. You will direct the efforts of engineers, associate engineers and technicians in addition to collaborating with other system engineers and scientists within the ALS, ALS-U (upgrade project), other divisions, DOE labs, and the international accelerator community. You may become the technical lead.

What You Will Do:

• Given general instructions on new assignments and system developments for ALS and/or ALS-U:

  • Determine the scope and develop the plan.

  • Conduct Systems Analysis and develop the Requirements.

  • Create the System Design.

  • Conduct Development work.

  • Integrate and Test proto-types.

  • Direct the production and installation of power conversion equipment.

  • Support Operations and Maintenance of the system.

• Collaborate across diverse technical fields (accelerator physics, magnet design, controls, facilities engineering) to develop specifications for high stability power supplies.

• Develop circuit models to simulate power supply performance.

• Lead the design of and maintain power supply test stands, and develop test procedures including tuning of PID control loops.

• Analyze power supply reliability and develop maintenance procedures based on MTBF for power electronics and associated hardware.

• As the Technical Lead, work with technicians under minimal supervision to test power supplies for stability, reliability, and efficiency.

• Participate in design reviews for the ALS, ALS-U and other projects.

• Present periodic progress/status reports on the power supply effort.

• Responsible for occasional 24/7 support, troubleshoot power electronics and power conversion circuits working with the Electronics Maintenance Technicians to diagnose and repair errant equipment.

• Provide and maintain documentation of power electronics equipment.

• Lead the design of power supply cable plants, power distribution, cooling and controls systems (including safety interlocks and programming of PLCs) to integrate a large number of power supplies with other complex equipment.

• Lead the design of highly stable and reliable unipolar and bipolar power supplies.

• Develop cost and schedule estimates for power electronics projects.

• May have occasional foreign and domestic travel to attend reviews, visit vendors and attend conferences and workshops.

Additional Responsibilities as needed:

• Analysis, design and troubleshooting of pulsed power systems including those based on solid state and/or thyratron switching.

• Design of pulsed magnetics, including finite element analysis.

• Participate in developing electrical safety procedures for high voltage, current and/or energy devices.

What is Required:

• BSEE and a minimum of 8 years experience in power electronics, power supply or pulsed power R&D or design.

• Demonstrated deep, wide-ranging knowledge base and experience in power conversion engineering and has resolved complex issues in creative and effective ways.

• Demonstrated deep, wide-ranging knowledge base with the following technical areas:

  • High voltage, high current and high frequency switching

  • Analog, logic and mixed signal circuit design, analysis and simulation using SPICE, Simplorer, Saber, or similar.

  • Characteristics of and circuit design using power electronics devices including BJTs, MOSFETS and IGBTs.

  • Integration of equipment into highly complex systems.

  • Single phase and poly-phase AC circuits and power distribution.

  • Communication and control theory, and PID controllers.

  • Knowledge of electrical codes and electrical safety such as NEC, LOTO and NFPA 70E.

• Good written and oral communications skills and use of standard Office produces such as Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Project.

• Demonstrated ability to make independent decisions, solves unique problems, and interacts effectively within a diverse team.

• CAD tools for schematic capture such as Orcad or Mentor Graphics and mechanical design such as AutoCAD or other 2D and solid modeling tools.

Desired Qualifications:

• MSEE and a minimum of 6 years experience with an emphasis on power electronics, power supplies or pulsed power R&D or design.

• Electromagnetics design of inductors, high frequency transformers and high voltage/current/ frequency structures.

• Electromagnetics analysis using FEA codes such as MAXWELL, OPERA or similar.

• Thermal analysis and design, and the use of FEA codes.

• Experience with vacuum tubes and thyratrons.

• Systems control using PLCs, PXI or similar.

• PCB layout and design.

• Familiarity with particle accelerators.

• Experience with the EPICS (Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System) toolkit is a plus.

• Programming skills such as MATLAB, FPGA languages, C/C++, visual basic is a plus.

Notes:

• This is a full time, 2 year, term appointment with the possibility of extension or conversion to Career appointment based upon satisfactory job performance, continuing availability of funds and ongoing operational needs.

• This position may be subject to a background check. Any convictions will be evaluated to determine if they directly relate to the responsibilities and requirements of the position. Having a conviction history will not automatically disqualify an applicant from being considered for employment.

• Diversity, equity, and inclusion are core values at Berkeley Lab. Our excellence can only be fully realized by faculty, students, and staff who share our commitment to these values. Successful candidates for our faculty positions will demonstrate evidence of a commitment to advancing equity and inclusion.

• Work will be primarily performed at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA.

Equal Employment Opportunity: Berkeley Lab is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status. Berkeley Lab is in compliance with the Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Provision under 41 CFR 60-1.4. Click here to view the poster and supplement: "Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law."

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory encourages applications from women, minorities, veterans, and other underrepresented groups presently considering scientific research careers.