SPARC Quench Protection Engineer

Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) has the fastest, lowest cost path to commercial fusion energy.

CFS collaborates with MIT to leverage decades of research combined with groundbreaking new high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnet technology. HTS magnets will enable compact fusion power plants that can be constructed faster and at lower cost. Our mission is to deploy these power plants to meet global decarbonization goals as fast as possible. To that end, CFS has assembled a team of leaders in tough tech, fusion science, and manufacturing with a track record of rapid execution. Supported by the world’s leading investors, CFS is uniquely positioned to deliver limitless, clean, fusion power to combat climate change. To implement this plan, we are looking to add dedicated people to the team who treat people well, improve our work by adding multifaceted perspectives and new ways of solving problems, have achieved outstanding results through a range of pursuits, and have skills and experience related to this role.

The SPARC Cable Quench Protection System (CQPS) is responsible for monitoring the superconducting magnets and rapidly discharging the magnets if they quench and begin to overheat. The quench protection system must operate reliably to prevent damage to SPARC's superconducting magnets. It is a vital part of a robust fusion energy device. The SPARC Quench Protection Engineer will be responsible for operating the cable quench protection system, which uses a novel fiber optic-based quench detection technology, and ensuring that the behavior of the system matches modeled expectations. In addition, the Engineer will be responsible for evolving and updating the CQPS system during SPARC commissioning and throughout the testing campaign. The SPARC Quench Protection Engineer will be a highly interdisciplinary role and interface with Tokamak Operations, Research and Development (R&D), Instrumentation and Control (I&C), SPARC Software, and several other teams.

This team member will

• Manage evolution of the quench detection algorithm (communicating needs)
• Review, debug, evaluate quench detection events during operations
• Perform system health and maintenance tests
• Determine if a planned pulse falls within the safe operating regime of the quench detection system.
• Perform post-pulse analysis to verify that the fiber optic quench sensors perform as expected.
• Manage interfacing systems, cross-team communications, interdisciplinary-based projects, etc.
• Make rapid, real-time data-driven decisions during commissioning, testing, and machine operation
• Manage interfacing systems, cross-team communications, interdisciplinary-based projects, etc.
• Heavily coordinate with R&D team with continued evolution of CQPS system

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, physics, or another relevant field
• 5+ years of experience
• Instrumentation and controls or real time diagnostics experience
• Complex signal processing software experience
• Design and testing of complex experimental, research and development systems
• Safety/hazards analysis
• High consequence operations experience
• Commissioning experience
• Signal processing, data analysis
• Fundamental understanding of electromagnetism, structural mechanics, and heat transfer (general physics background)
• Excellent interdisciplinary communication skills (across multiple teams)

Additional experience and/or qualifications

• Hands-on operations experience on complex systems
• Experience working on a software engineering team and has used version control tools such as Github
• Optical spectra analysis
• Experience with Python, C++
• Perform activities such as sitting for extended periods of time
• Willingness to travel or work required nights/weekends/on-call occasionally
• Work in a facility that contains industrial hazards including heat, cold, noise, fumes, strong magnets, lead (Pb), high voltage, high current, pressure systems, and cryogenics

CFS team members thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment and have demonstrated exceptional results through a range of different pursuits. We all tightly align with our company values of integrity, execution, impact and self-critique. As we grow, we are looking to add talented people who are mission driven and bring diverse perspectives and new ways of solving problems.

At CFS, we deeply value diversity and are an equal opportunity employer by choice. We consider all qualified applicants equally for employment. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, protected veteran status, religion, physical or mental disability, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, or any other basis protected by law, ordinance, or regulation.