Optical Engineer, Test & Metrology

Background

Cowboy Space Corporation is building the infrastructure to power and connect the orbital economy. Our modular, scalable satellites collect sunlight in Low Earth Orbit to enable multiple integrated applications: transmitting energy via infrared lasers (space-to-Earth and space-to-space), powering on-orbit high-performance computing clusters (GPU/TPU), and providing secure, high-bandwidth optical data transport.

Current energy and data systems rely on complex logistics and outdated infrastructure. Cowboy Space Corporation overcomes these challenges by enabling direct, on-demand, secure, and scalable energy distribution and data processing from space. This will revolutionize how we operate in orbit and on Earth, supporting the rapidly expanding space industrial base, ISAM (In-Space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing) operations, remote regions, and military bases.

Baiju Bhatt founded Cowboy Space Corporation in 2024. Inspired by his father’s work with NASA Langley Research Center, Baiju earned his B.S. in Physics and M.S. in Mathematics at Stanford before co-founding Robinhood, now a public company that has helped over 20 million Americans access the financial system. Cowboy Space Corporation has raised ~$365 million from Index Ventures, Interlagos, Construct Ventures, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, NEA, and others.

This ambitious mission demands extraordinary talent. Cowboy Space Corporation’s team has worked at places like SpaceX, Blue Origin, Stoke Space, Astranis, and NASA, and is based in San Carlos, CA. If you're ready to solve complex technical challenges and help build the most important energy company in the world, we want to hear from you.

About the Role

The Laser Engineering and Optical Communications team is hiring an Optical Engineer, Test & Metrology, to help design and run the tests that verify our laser and optical communications hardware, from individual components through full satellite integration. You will spend most of your time in the lab: building test setups, aligning optics, taking measurements, and turning data into results the design team can act on.

You will work alongside the optical, photonics, and laser engineers who design the hardware, follow that hardware through satellite integration, and take on increasing responsibility for test design and test campaigns.

Responsibilities

• Build, align, and operate optical test setups for free-space, fiber-optic, and interferometric components and subassemblies.
• Measure optical performance, including power, spectrum, beam quality, wavefront, polarization, and alignment, and reduce the data into clear results.
• Develop test plans and procedures with lead engineers, then execute them and record results accurately.
• Support testing as hardware moves through integration: components, subassemblies, deployable opto-mechanical assemblies, the optical payload, and the full satellite.
• Operate test equipment including OSAs, optical power meters, oscilloscopes, BER testers, beam profilers, wavefront sensors, and interferometers.
• Write scripts to automate measurements and data analysis.
• Investigate anomalies and feed findings back into the design.
• Support field campaigns, including ground station setup, fiber-optic system checkout, and pointing, acquisition, and tracking (PAT) validation.
• Follow laser safety procedures and keep test setups, calibration records, and configuration logs current.
• Domestic and international travel up to 10%.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Optics, Physics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.
• 3+ years of hands-on experience in an optics or photonics lab environment.
• Experience with precision optical alignment on a bench.
• Experience operating standard optical test equipment (power meters, OSAs, oscilloscopes, beam profilers).
• Working knowledge of optics fundamentals: Gaussian beams, fiber coupling, polarization, and interferometry.
• Experience analyzing measurement data in Python, or a similar language.
• Familiarity with Class 3B and Class 4 laser safety practices.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree or Ph.D. in Optics, Photonics, or a related field.
• Experience with high-power fiber laser or amplifier systems.
• Experience with free-space optical communications, coherent detection, or BER testing.
• Experience assembling precision opto-mechanical hardware, including interferometric or polarization-sensitive assemblies.
• Experience with wavefront or interferometric metrology (Shack-Hartmann sensors, Fizeau interferometers).
• Experience with instrument control and test automation (PyVISA, LabVIEW, or similar).
• Exposure to environmental testing (thermal vacuum, vibration) of optical hardware.

Compensation and Benefits

The salary range for this position is $145,000 - $175,000 annually. The actual base salary offered will depend on factors such as job-related skills, experience, qualifications, and internal equity.

• Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.
• Employees and their eligible dependents may enroll in medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) retirement savings plan
• Paid time off
• Unlimited paid time off
• Paid parental leave
• Relocation assistance if applicable
• Daily lunch in the office and a fully stocked kitchen with beverages and snacks

ITAR Requirements

• Export Control Requirement: To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), applicants must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.