Embedded Software Engineer

About Commonwealth Fusion Systems:

Commonwealth Fusion Systems is on a mission to deliver the urgent transition to fusion energy.

Combining decades of research, top talent and new technologies, we’re designing and building commercially viable fusion power plants. And working with policymakers and suppliers to build the energy industry of the future.

We’re in the best position to make it happen. Since 2018, we’ve raised over $2 billion in capital – more than any other fusion energy company in the U.S.

Now we’re looking for more thinkers, doers, builders, and makers to join us. People who’ll bring new perspectives, solve tough problems, and thrive as part of a team.

If that’s you and this role fits, we want to hear from you.

Join the power movement as an Embedded Software Engineer

The SPARC Software team seeks an exceptional software engineer to develop real-time, high-rate software for the SPARC tokamak. SPARC senses thousands of physical measurements while controlling millions of amps to superconducting magnets and millions of watts of RF power to the plasma. These closed-loop systems must control at rates substantially greater than 1 kHz and must sample some parameters in the MHz range. These systems must interface with the SPARC plasma control system, data system, and other plant systems running on industrial control platforms.

As a member of the embedded software team you will be a hands-on technical leader, in charge of writing excellent quality, production-ready code for mission-critical real-time systems. You will collect functional requirements from plant and tokamak engineers, operations engineers, and plasma physicists and produce software solutions to meet these requirements.

You will work with simulation and test engineers to integrate your software into software testbeds, hardware testbeds, and the SPARC tokamak. The culmination of your team’s work will control SPARC through first plasma, fusion operations, and the first time a controlled fusion reaction produces more energy than is consumes.

What you'll do:

• Develop real-time, high-rate software platforms and associated toolchains
• Contribute to the software development lifecycle for control and data acquisition software across SPARC
• Write and maintain the documentation of SPARC software functional requirements from design engineers, operations engineers, and plasma physicists
• Work with instrumentation and controls engineers to specify hardware components and integrated systems for fast control and measurement systems
• Support SPARC system integration, commissioning, and plasma fusion operations

What we’re looking for:

• Engineering degree in related field, such as computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, etc.
• Experience in developing software in C, C++, rust, or similar compiled language.
• Understanding of the fundamentals of embedded and real-time software systems.

Bonus points:

• Broad embedded system software development experience including bare-metal code, driver development, OS platform development, and real-time application development
• Low-latency network communication
• C++, Python (compiled systems programming and interpreted scripting languages)
• Linux
• Microcontroller or FPGA development
• Networking (IP/UDP/TCP)
• Software/hardware interfaces (ADCs/DACs, UARTs, Ethernet, etc.)

Essential Requirements:

• Ability to occasionally lift up to 50 lbs
• Perform activities such as stooping, climbing, typing, standing, sitting, etc. for extended periods of time
• Adhere to safety protocols for safety hazards for heat, cold, and noise
• Willingness to occasionally travel or work required nights/weekends/on-call
• #LI-Onsite