Power Supply Engineer | Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Location

Berkeley, CA | United States

Job description

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

This position is 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. This role will contribute to or lead design work, collaborate with other system engineers and scientists within the ALS, ALS-U (upgrade project), other divisions, DOE labs, and the international accelerator community and may direct the efforts of engineers, associate engineers and technicians. This position is in the Engineering Division and is matrixed to the Advanced Light Source Upgrade project (ALS-U), a project will install two new synchrotron rings and transfer lines and will report to the ALS Electrical Engineering and Controls Lead at ALS.

What You Will Do:

• Determines methods and procedures on 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.
• Networks with key contacts outside their own area of expertise to develop and maintain collaboration across diverse technical fields (accelerator physics, magnet design, controls, facilities engineering) to develop specifications for high stability power supplies.
• Design of highly stable and reliable unipolar and bipolar power supplies.
• Develop circuit models to simulate power supply performance.
• Lead the complex 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, use professional concepts to resolve complex issues in creative and effective ways while working with technicians under minimal supervision to test power supplies for stability, reliability, and efficiency.
• Supervise direct technical staff on assignments.
• Present at design reviews for the ALS, ALS-U and other projects.
• Present periodic progress/status reports on the power supply effort.
• May help 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.
• Oversee 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:

• 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.
• 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:

Power Supply Engineer (Level 3) Specific Responsibilities:

• Requires a minimum of 5 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree; or 3 years and a Master's degree; or equivalent work experience.
• Minimum of 5 years experience in power electronics, power supply or pulsed power R&D or design.
• Demonstrated strong technical understanding and experience in power conversion engineering and has provided creative solutions to a range of issues.
• Experience with electromagnetics design of inductors, high frequency transformers and high voltage/current/ frequency structures.
• Demonstrated strong technical understanding and 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.
• Excellent written and oral communications skill and use of standard Office products such as Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Project.
• Demonstrated ability to make technical decisions, solves difficult 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.

Power Supply Engineer (Level 4) Specific Responsibilities, in addition to the responsibilities of the level 3:

• Requires a minimum of 8 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree; or 6 years and a Master's degree; or equivalent experience.
• Minimum of 6 years experience in power electronics, power supply or pulsed power R&D or design.

Desired Qualifications:

• MSEE and a minimum of 3 years experience with an emphasis on power electronics, power supplies or pulsed power R&D or design.
• 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 controls using PLCs, PXI or similar.
• PCB layout and design.
• Familiarity with particle accelerators.
• Experience with the EPICS (Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System) toolkit.
• Programming skills such as MATLAB, FPGA languages, C/C++, and visual basic.

If hired at level 3:

The full salary range of this position is between $9,575-$16,155 monthly and is expected to pay between a targeted range of $10,771-$13,165 monthly depending upon the candidate's skills, knowledge, and abilities, including education, certifications, and years of experience.

If hired at level 4:

The full salary range of this position is between $11,448-$19,320 monthly and is expected to pay between a targeted range of $12,880-$15,742 monthly depending upon the candidate's skills, knowledge, and abilities, including education, certifications, and years of experience.

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

Berkeley Lab is committed to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accountability (IDEA) and strives to continue building community with these shared values and commitments. Berkeley Lab is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer. We heartily welcome applications from women, minorities, veterans, and all who would contribute to the Lab's mission of leading scientific discovery, inclusion, and professionalism. In support of our diverse global community, all qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status.

Equal Opportunity and IDEA Information Links: Know your rights, click here for the supplement: Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law and the Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Provision under 41 CFR 60-1.4.

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