Instrument Control Engineer, Software, Center for Quantum Computing

Amazon • Pasadena, CA

1d

About The Position

The Amazon Center for Quantum Computing (CQC) is a multi-disciplinary team of
scientists, engineers, and technicians, on a mission to develop a fault-tolerant
quantum computer.

We are looking to hire an Instrument Control Engineer to join our growing
software team. You will work closely with our experimental physics and control
hardware development teams to enable their work characterizing, calibrating, and
operating novel quantum devices. The ideal candidate should be able to translate
high-level science requirements into software implementations (e.g. Python
APIs/frameworks, compiler passes, embedded SW, instrument drivers) that are
performant, scalable, and intuitive. This requires someone who (1) has a strong
desire to work within a team of scientists and engineers, and (2) demonstrates
ownership in initiating and driving projects to completion. This role has a
particular emphasis on working directly with our control hardware designers and
vendors to develop instrument software for test and measurement.

Inclusive Team Culture
Here at Amazon, it’s in our nature to learn and be curious. Our employee-led
affinity groups foster a culture of inclusion that empower us to be proud of our
differences. Ongoing events and learning experiences, including our
Conversations on Race and Ethnicity (CORE) and AmazeCon conferences, inspire us
to never stop embracing our uniqueness.

Diverse Experiences
Amazon values diverse experiences. Even if you do not meet all of the
qualifications and skills listed in the job description, we encourage candidates
to apply. If your career is just starting, hasn’t followed a traditional path,
or includes alternative experiences, don’t let it stop you from applying.

Mentorship & Career Growth
We’re continuously raising our performance bar as we strive to become Earth’s
Best Employer. That’s why you’ll find endless knowledge-sharing, mentorship and
other career-advancing resources here to help you develop into a better-rounded
professional.

Work/Life Balance
We value work-life harmony. Achieving success at work should never come at the
expense of sacrifices at home, which is why we strive for flexibility as part of
our working culture. When we feel supported in the workplace and at home,
there’s nothing we can’t achieve in the cloud.

Export Control Requirement
Due to applicable export control laws and regulations, candidates must be either
a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card
holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum, or
be able to obtain a US export license. If you are unsure if you meet these
requirements, please apply and Amazon will review your application for
eligibility.

We are looking for candidates with strong engineering principles, a bias for
action, superior problem-solving, and excellent communication skills. Working
effectively within a team environment is essential. As an Instrument Control
Engineer embedded in a broader science organization, you will have the
opportunity to work on new ideas and stay abreast of the field of experimental
quantum computation.

A day in the life
Your time will be spent on projects that extend functional capabilities or
performance of our internal research software stack. This requires working
backwards from the needs of science staff in the context of our larger
experimental roadmap. You will translate science and software requirements into
design proposals balancing implementation complexity against time-to-delivery.
Once a design proposal has been reviewed and accepted, you’ll drive
implementation and coordinate with internal stakeholders to ensure a smooth roll
out. Because many high-level experimental goals have cross-cutting requirements,
you’ll often work closely with other engineers or scientists or on the team.

About the team
You will be joining the Software group within the Amazon Center of Quantum
Computing. Our team is comprised of scientists and software engineers who are
building scalable software that enables quantum computing technologies.

Requirements

• 2+ years of professional experience programming in a modern programming language e.g. Java, C++, C#, Python experience
• PhD, or Bachelor's degree and 6+ years of applied research experience
• 1+ years experience with control systems for experimental quantum computing
• Experience working with scientists in a research environment
• Experience with full software development life cycle; including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations

Nice To Haves

• Experience with embedded software development (e.g. low-level device driver or kernel development)
• Experience with digital signal processing
• Experience with RFSoC platforms
• Experience with standard communication interfaces (USB, PCIe, Ethernet, etc.)
• Experience with compiler development (optimizations or backend code generation)
• Experience with low-latency networking technologies (e.g. RDMA)
• Experience with monitoring and telemetry platforms such as OpenTelemetry

Responsibilities

• Work with control hardware developers, as a “subject matter expert” on the software interfaces around our control hardware
• Collaborate with external control hardware vendors to understand and refine integration strategies
• Implement instrument drivers and control logic in Python and/or a low-level languages, including C++ or Rust
• Contribute to our compiler backend to enable the efficient execution of OpenQASM-based experiments on our next-generation control hardware
• Benchmark system performance and help define key performance metrics
• Ensure new features are successfully integrated into our Python-based experimental software stack
• Partner with scientists to actively contribute to the codebase through mentorship and documentation

Benefits

• health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage)
• 401(k) matching
• paid time off
• parental leave

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level