Principal Electrical Engineer, Implant Electronics

Location: San Francisco, CA

Type: Full-Time (on-site)

Level: L5 — Principal Engineer

Key Responsibilities: Own the overall implant electrical architecture: subsystem partitioning, interfaces, power distribution, and grounding and reference strategy across the stimulation, recording, optical and digital electronics. Contribute directly to schematic design, component selection and board architecture, taking major portions of the implant electronics from concept through bring‑up and debug. Lead the transition from development boards to a dense rigid‑flex/HDI implant PCBA, working with layout, fabrication and assembly partners. Resolve cross‑subsystem electrical design decisions and trade‑offs with the senior leads, and own system‑level interface and integration requirements. Ensure the integrated implant PCBA meets its power, thermal, noise, safety, EMC, MRI and manufacturability requirements, and verify it at the system level. Define the electrical interfaces with mechanical engineering, including the enclosure, feedthroughs, connectors and coil placement. Produce architecture documents, interface specifications, analyses and verification reports for the design history file under ISO 13485, and contribute to ISO 14971 risk analysis. Mentor junior engineers through hands‑on design work and design reviews. Required Qualifications and Skills Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related discipline; advanced degree preferred. 8+ years of industry experience (or 6+ with PhD) developing complex electronic systems, with significant hands‑on responsibility for architecture, circuit design, integration, and debugging. Track record owning the electrical architecture of a complex, space‑and power‑constrained product through to production. Hands‑on schematic design, component selection, bring‑up and debug of mixed‑signal boards combining analog front ends, power conversion and digital logic. Deep expertise in power distribution, grounding, noise and signal integrity in dense mixed‑signal systems. Experience designing rigid‑flex and/or HDI PCBAs and working with fabrication and assembly vendors on manufacturability. Working knowledge of EMC design and testing, and of designing electronics to thermal and safety constraints. Demonstrated technical leadership: driving cross‑functional design decisions with minimal oversight and mentoring engineers. Strong technical documentation and communication skills, with the ability to clearly define interfaces, architecture decisions, constraints, and design rationale. Bonus Skills Active implantable or Class II/III medical device development; familiarity with ISO 14708, IEC 60601, ISO 13485 and ISO 14971. MR Conditional design and testing (e.g. ASTM F2182, ISO/TS 10974). Neural stimulation or recording electronics; wirelessly powered systems. Reporting Structure: The SOMA electrical engineering team has a flat structure. This role reports directly to the VP of Product Engineering and Manufacturing and works as a peer alongside the senior leads.

Benefits: Healthcare, dental and vision