Controls & Systems-Design Consultant

About the role

Astera is a private foundation focused on accelerating scientific and technological progress by operating research projects like high-velocity startups. This consultant role focuses on the Gen-1 DNA-origami electrostatic actuator, ensuring the device architecture is built for observability and control from the start. You will own the translation of high-level biological measurement goals into concrete control-theoretic specifications that guide hardware implementation. The position requires you to act as a rigorous systems thinker who can bridge abstract biological models and deterministic control engineering. You will be responsible for establishing the safety and performance boundaries within which the wet-lab team can explore freely. This role demands comfort with ambiguity and the ability to design frameworks rather than just point solutions. You will ensure that every design decision is evaluated through the lens of long-term observability, controllability, and experimental reproducibility.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Establish control-system constraints and requirements for the DNA origami actuator-sensor system, including latency, noise floor, bandwidth, and drive-signal dynamics.
• Evaluate electrostatic drive-stack and FET position-sensor designs to identify potential issues with estimation, stabilization, or system identification.
• Define data capture protocols for single-molecule and ensemble experiments to ensure the resulting data supports future ML modeling and system identification.
• Develop a simulation plan and closed-loop control architecture for a future full-time engineer to execute.
• Design experiments that stress-test the actuator under varying noise, temperature, and loading conditions to validate robustness.
• Translate biological variability and noise characteristics into quantitative design margins for the control algorithms.
• Specify interfaces between the wet-lab hardware and the digital control stack to ensure modularity and future scalability.
• Produce clear documentation and architectural diagrams that allow other engineers to understand and extend the system without loss of context.
• Provide fractional guidance to a physics and wet-lab team, translating control objectives into lab-ready experimental protocols.
• Conduct code reviews and technical discussions to ensure that implementation details adhere to the specified performance envelope.
• Recommend instrumentation and sensors that meet the required precision, noise, and dynamic response criteria.
• Identify failure modes and define mitigation strategies that do not compromise the delicate nature of DNA-origami structures.
• Coordinate with external experts to validate models and ensure that the design remains aligned with biological reality.
• Deliver a documented, clear handoff to the project team that includes assumptions, limitations, and recommended next steps.
• Support the integration of the control system into broader platform-level experiments as the foundation roadmap evolves.

Requirements

• PhD or MS in electrical engineering, robotics, controls, or a related field, or equivalent industry experience.
• Demonstrated ability to design closed-loop control systems across multiple scales, from electronics to physical actuation.
• Experience translating sensor and plant characteristics into design constraints, specifically for precision instrumentation, nanoscale, or noisy systems.
• Proficiency in estimation and system identification, including the use of observers or Kalman filters.
• Demonstrated skill in defining data capture protocols that ensure signal integrity and metadata richness for downstream analysis.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills to articulate complex control concepts to interdisciplinary teams.
• Ability to provide fractional guidance to a physics and wet-lab team with occasional on-site work in Emeryville.
• Self-directed work ethic with the discipline to manage priorities and deliverables without direct supervision.
• Willingness to utilize AI tools to improve output, provided the resulting designs remain verifiable and robust.
• Commitment to building public goods and contributing to open scientific progress where applicable.
• Capacity to work within contractual constraints, including scope, schedule, and documentation standards.
• Familiarity with the challenges associated with electrostatic actuation at the nanoscale is beneficial but not required.
• Willingness to engage in iterative design cycles where requirements evolve based on experimental feedback.

Nice to have

• Experience with nanoscale positioning systems or precision instrumentation.
• Background in biological measurement or synthetic biology applications.
• Prior work on DNA-origami, molecular robotics, or related bio-nano interfaces.
• Familiarity with modern control synthesis tools such as H-infinity or mu-synthesis.
• Experience deploying control systems in laboratory environments with strict contamination or vibration constraints.
• Knowledge of machine learning techniques that complement first-principles models.

Practical notes

This is a contract position requiring periodic travel and occasional on-site collaboration in Emeryville, California. The role requires an internally driven approach to building public goods and a willingness to utilize AI tools to improve output.