Senior IC&E Reactor Protection System Design Engineer

Kairos Power is an advanced nuclear energy company developing fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactors (KP-FHR) designed to deliver safe, affordable, and reliable clean energy at scale. The company takes an iterative development approach, building and testing reactor systems progressively to reduce technical and commercial risk before full deployment. Their technology combines proven reactor physics with innovative design to close the gap between advanced nuclear concepts and commercial viability. Kairos Power is currently constructing the Hermes demonstration reactor series in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, with permits from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, marking a significant milestone in de-risking nuclear construction and supply chains for future commercial fleets. The company has formed the KP-OMADA advanced nuclear alliance, collaborating with major partners including Google and the Tennessee Valley Authority to pioneer new models for advanced nuclear deployment. Kairos Power pursues vertical integration by manufacturing reactor components, plant equipment modules, fuel, and molten salt coolant in-house across facilities in California, New Mexico, and Tennessee, enabling tight quality control and cost reduction. This comprehensive, self-reliant approach positions Kairos Power as a distinctive force in the clean energy transition, with nuclear energy central to its mission of decarbonizing the global energy system.

Job Summary 

The Senior Engineer IC&E Systems Design Engineer is responsible for the design and development of custom, safety-critical instrumentation and control hardware systems for an advanced nuclear power plant. 

This role is focused on hands-on hardware and system design, spanning circuit design, PCB development, system integration, and qualification testing. Engineers in this role work closely with experienced team members to deliver high-reliability designs while building deep expertise in nuclear-grade electronics and rigorous engineering processes. 

The person will work with an integrated design team to perform the following duties: 

Primary Responsibilities 

• Design and develop analog and digital circuits for IC&E systems, including signal conditioning, power distribution, and control logic.
• Create and review schematics and PCB layouts, working closely with layout engineers and manufacturers.
• Support system architecture development, including interface definition and hardware integration.
• Contribute to design trade studies balancing performance, reliability, manufacturability, and cost. 
• Prototyping, Integration & Testing.
• Support bring-up, debugging and validation of hardware prototypes. 
• Develop and execute test plans and procedures for functional and qualification testing. 
• Analyze test data and implement design improvements.
• Work hands-on with lab equipment (oscilloscopes, power supplies, DAQs, etc.) to characterize and troubleshoot hardware. 
• Safety-Critical System Development.
• Contribute to the design of Reactor Protection System (RPS) hardware under guidance. 
• Apply principles of fault tolerance, redundancy and fail-safe design.
• Interpret and implement requirements derived from nuclear safety standards. 
• Identify technical risks and design issues and develop or recommend solutions consistent with system requirements and engineering processes. 
• Documentation & Nuclear Quality.
• Produce and maintain high-quality engineering documentation: 

• • Schematics and design descriptions. 

• •  Interface definitions. 

• • Test plans, procedures and reports. 

• • Bills of materials and configuration records. 
• Ensure traceability of requirements, design decisions and test results.  
• Participate in formal design reviews and configuration control processes.
• Configuration management, design control and change-control processes in accordance with applicable quality requirements.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration. 
• Work closely with manufacturing, procurement, testing, and systems engineering teams. 
• Support vendor engagement for fabrication, assembly, and component selection. 
• Contribute to resolving integration and production challenges.  
• Technical Development & Knowledge Sharing. 
• Maintains and expands technical expertise in high-reliability electronics design, nuclear regulatory and quality requirements, and the end-to-end hardware development lifecycle. 
• Applies evolving technical knowledge and industry best practices to assigned design, testing and integration activities. 
• Shares technical knowledge and lessons learned with team members and contributes to continuous improvement of engineering practices..
• Takes increasing ownership of complex technical assignments and provides guidance to less-experienced engineers within areas of expertise.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field. 
• Experience in regulated or high-reliability environments (nuclear, aerospace, medical, etc.).
• 6 years of relevant engineering experience involving electronic hardware, instrumentation and control systems, or related systems design. 
• Demonstrated experience in analog and digital circuit design. 
• Experience with schematic capture and PCB design tools (e.g., Altium, Cadence, Ki Cad).
• Experience with lab instrumentation and debugging. 

Preferred Qualifications 

• Experience with PCB layout considerations (stack-up, routing constraints, EMI/EMC awareness) is preferred but not required. 
• Experience with Structured root-cause analysis to debugging and failure analysis is preferred but not required. 
• Exposure to system integration and hardware interfaces is preferred but not required.
• Exposure to FPGA or programmable logic (e.g., basic HDL, Verilog, interfacing) is preferred but not required. 
• Experience with Embedded systems experience (microcontrollers, firmware bring-up) is preferred but not required. 
• Demonstrated contribution to hardware development projects (academic or industry) is preferred but not required. 
• Experience taking a design from concept through testing or integration is preferred but not required.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities: 

• Advanced working knowledge of analog and digital circuit design principles applicable to instrumentation, controls, and high-reliability electronic systems. 
• Working knowledge of PCB design principles, including grounding, power distribution, signal integrity, component selection, derating, and EMI/EMC considerations. 
• Ability to independently translate system and hardware requirements into practical hardware designs. 
• Ability to evaluate design alternatives and make technically sound decisions considering reliability, performance, manufacturability, testability, and cost. 
• Ability to troubleshoot complex electronic hardware using structured debugging and root-cause-analysis methods. 
• Ability to develop and execute hardware verification, validation, integration, and qualification test activities. 
• Ability to interpret technical requirements, standards, specifications, and engineering documentation applicable to assigned work. 
• Ability to produce clear, accurate, and traceable engineering documentation. 
• Ability to identify technical risks, communicate their potential impact, and recommend appropriate mitigation actions.
• Ability to effectively review the technical work of others and provide constructive engineering feedback. 
• Ability to work effectively across engineering disciplines and with manufacturing, suppliers, procurement, quality, and testing organizations. 
• Ability to manage assigned technical work with limited supervision and exercise independent engineering judgment within established requirements and processes. 
• Ability to communicate complex technical information clearly to technical and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Ability to provide technical guidance or mentoring to less-experienced engineers within areas of expertise.
• Ability to work with highly collaborative team. 
• Ability to solve problems quickly and efficiently. 
• Prioritizes and ensures safety of oneself and others. 
• Ability to proactively collect, manage and transfer knowledge. 
• Ability to seek different and novel ways to create efficiencies when working on problems, challenges and issues. 

Physical Demands 

• Ascending or descending ladders and stairs.
• Setting up and transferring temporary structures (e.g. scaffolding, ladders). 
• Moving self in different positions to accomplish tasks in various environments including tight and confined spaces. 
• Remaining in a stationary position, often standing, or sitting for prolonged periods. 
• Moving about to accomplish tasks or moving from one worksite to another. 
• Adjusting, moving, transporting, installing, positioning, or removing objects up to 30 pounds in all directions. 
• Communicating with others to exchange information. 
• Operating motor vehicles, heavy equipment or machinery.
• Use hand tools.
• Repetitive assembly operations of manufacturing test fixtures and test setups in collaboration with engineering and manufacturing teams. 

Environmental Conditions  

• General office environment. 
• Noisy environments.
• Small and/or enclosed spaces.
• Odors or fumes from chemicals or chemical reactions.
• Assessing the accuracy, neatness and thoroughness of the work assigned.
• High-concentration, demanding and fast-paced.
• Prototyping/Test Facilities. 
• Manufacturing/Industrial Environments. 

Safety and PPE 

•           Reading and interpreting hazardous warning signs. 
•           Manipulating, cleaning and disposal of hazardous materials.
•           Reporting issues with equipment or unsafe conditions.
•           Color identification: detecting, distinguishing, recognizing and identifying colors.
•           Wearing proper PPE, to include face mask, face shields, gloves, safety shoes, etc. 

Travel  

• Some travel may be required - 10%  

Additional Requirements  

• Requires extended hours to support launch and critical project timelines occasionally. 

 

The salary range for this position is $140,600 - $165,000 for employees working onsite at our Alameda, CA headquarters. The range provided in this job posting represents the typical range or starting rate of candidates hired in California. Factors that maybe used to determine your actual salary may include your education, experience, knowledge, skills, ability, and the market data for your work location, and a comparison to other employees already in the role. 

• Onsite: #LI-Onsite
• Hybrid: #LI-Hybrid