Principal Hardware Engineer, Precision Instrumentation

About the role

You will conceive and deliver the physical backbone of neural experimentation, owning complex instruments from initial concept through reliable operation in active labs. You will translate rough scientific intent into tangible, repeatable hardware systems that directly enable discovery. This role requires you to design and construct precision mechanical systems, custom optics, and specialized electronics that do not exist off the shelf. You will collaborate daily with neuroscientists, using your craft to turn their questions into testable hardware platforms. You will set the standard for design rigor, documentation, and reproducibility within the growing hardware organization. You will also shape the prototyping facility, defining the tools, workflows, and culture that accelerate future builds. Finally, you will mentor and hire other engineers, ensuring the team can scale without compromising quality or ownership.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Architect and deliver precision mechanical experiments, including titanium microfixtures, micrometer-precision electrode drives, and custom machined jigs that set the limits of what science can probe.
• Design and assemble components for custom microscopes and optical systems, handling alignment strategies and mounting hardware that keep critical paths stable and repeatable.
• Build custom laboratory instrumentation and surgical or experimental robotics, iterating closely with scientists to refine function, safety, and usability in demanding workflows.
• Develop electronics and control hardware that bridge mechanical systems with data acquisition, ensuring clean signals, timing, and synchronization with the rest of the research stack.
• Establish and evolve the design and prototyping facility itself, selecting tooling, defining fabrication workflows, and sourcing capabilities so the team can move from idea to reliable hardware faster.
• Partner directly with neuroscientists to clarify experimental goals, extract requirements, and make pragmatic engineering tradeoffs that respect performance, cost, and timeline constraints.
• Drive technical direction for complex instruments, owning decisions that balance manufacturability, durability, and precision against scientific ambition.
• Document designs, processes, and learnings so that instruments remain maintainable and extensible as the team and experiments evolve.
• Mentor and hire hardware engineers, setting expectations for craftsmanship, collaboration, and ownership as the group scales.
• Continuously improve workshop standards, safety, and tooling so that high-quality work can be reproduced by the broader team.

Requirements

• A world-class generalist and hands-on problem-solver who has built precision hardware in a high-precision industry, ideally medical devices, robotics, aerospace, semiconductor capital equipment, or commercial scientific instrumentation.
• Demonstrated ability to design and build hardware that other people relied on for real work, and a record of keeping those systems running in demanding environments.
• Resourcefulness in getting things built quickly, combining in-house machining with 3D printing and strategic outsourcing to meet demanding timelines.
• Comfort working from a rough idea rather than a finished spec, engaging in collaborative discovery with scientists to define the path to a working instrument.
• Deep fundamentals in mechanical design and fabrication, with real working ability in electronics or optics, and no restriction to familiar domains when the science demands new skills.
• Intellectual curiosity, collaboration, and eagerness to learn the underlying science well enough to translate experimental questions into hardware solutions.
• A track record of owning complex instruments end-to-end, guiding them from concept through fabrication, integration, testing, and reliable operation in live experiments.
• Experience making and defending design tradeoffs across performance, manufacturability, cost, and timeline, using data and judgment to reach defensible decisions.
• Experience equipping and running a workshop, makerspace, or prototyping facility, setting standards for efficiency, safety, and quality.

Nice to have

• Experience with small precise parts, difficult materials, tight tolerances, precision motion, or optical alignment.
• Hands-on electronics design, including PCB layout, embedded systems, and sensor or actuator integration.
• Familiarity with electrophysiology or other low-volume, high-complexity hardware environments.
• CAD/CAM proficiency with hands-on machining (CNC, lathe, mill) and 3D printing.
• Experience integrating hardware with data acquisition systems, including TTL synchronization and serial or SPI protocols.

Practical notes

The posted salary range is based on location in the Bay Area. The successful candidate will receive a competitive compensation package, commensurate with their experience and location.