Sr. Electronics Design and Characterization Engineer (Zonal BMS)

Job Description

Position: Sr. Electronics Design and Characterization Engineer (Zonal BMS)

Location: Irvine, CA

Overview

A leading automotive technology company is seeking a Senior Electronics Design and Characterization Engineer to drive design verification, characterization, and validation activities for advanced vehicle electronic control units (ECUs), with a primary focus on Zonal Controller architectures and Battery Management Systems (BMS).

This role combines hands-on electronics characterization with early-stage design reviews, enabling engineers to influence hardware architecture, improve testability, and ensure robust product performance. The ideal candidate possesses deep expertise in circuit analysis, automotive electronics, power distribution systems, and automated validation methodologies.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop comprehensive design verification and characterization test plans throughout the ECU development lifecycle.
• Execute characterization and validation testing according to program milestones.
• Own test coverage analysis, reporting, and validation metrics.
• Perform bench-level characterization of ICs and PCBAs, including power distribution, switching circuits, driver outputs, and protection systems.
• Evaluate electrical behavior including current limits, voltage regulation, thermal derating, inrush current, inductive kickback, and sleep current performance.
• Characterize fault-protection functions including short circuits, open loads, over-current, over-voltage, reverse polarity, and load dump events.
• Lead electronic fuse (eFuse) testing and characterization activities.
• Provide design-for-testability recommendations during hardware development.
• Collaborate with hardware, firmware, validation, and systems engineering teams.
• Develop automation scripts and instrumentation drivers using Python.
• Utilize AI-assisted development tools to improve test automation and data analysis workflows.
• Analyze characterization datasets to identify performance trends, anomalies, and design improvements.
• Support firmware flashing, debugging, and troubleshooting activities.
• Lead root-cause investigations and corrective action efforts for validation failures.

Required Qualifications

• BS or MS in Electrical Engineering or related discipline.
• 7+ years of experience in electronics design, characterization, and validation testing.
• Strong understanding of analog and digital circuit analysis.
• Experience working with complex automotive electronic systems.
• Hands-on experience with laboratory instrumentation and automated test environments.
• Strong scripting and data analysis capabilities using Python.
• Experience utilizing AI-assisted development tools such as Copilot, Cursor, Claude, or similar technologies.
• Strong problem-solving, debugging, and analytical skills.

Required Work Experience

• Electronics characterization and validation testing.
• Hardware design reviews and design verification planning.
• Bench-level testing of ECUs, PCBAs, and semiconductor devices.
• Data analysis and automated test development.
• Cross-functional collaboration with hardware and firmware engineering teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Zonal Controllers, Body Control Modules, Battery Management Systems, Power Distribution Modules, or eFuse technologies.
• Familiarity with low-level firmware development and C programming.
• Experience with Altium Designer.
• Experience developing automated validation systems and custom test fixtures.
• Knowledge of automotive communication protocols and electrical architectures.
• Experience designing custom PCBAs and load emulation hardware.
• Familiarity with ISO 26262 Functional Safety concepts.
• Experience using Databricks or similar analytics platforms.
• Experience with electronic simulation tools such as LTspice, PSpice, and SIMetrix.

Technical Skills

• Electronics Design Validation
• Electronics Characterization
• ECU Testing
• Battery Management Systems (BMS)
• Zonal Controller Architecture
• High-Side Drivers
• Low-Side Drivers
• eFuse Technologies
• Circuit Analysis
• Analog Electronics
• Digital Electronics
• Oscilloscopes
• Digital Multimeters
• Power Supplies
• Electronic Loads
• Source Measure Units (SMU)
• Current Probes
• DAQ Systems
• Switch Matrices
• PCBA Validation
• Root Cause Analysis
• Design Verification Testing

Programming & Automation Skills

• Python
• Test Automation Development
• Instrument Driver Development
• Data Analysis
• Automated Validation Frameworks
• AI-Assisted Coding Tools
• Firmware Debugging
• Scripting & Reporting Automation

Automotive & Communication Protocol Experience

• CAN
• LIN
• SPI
• SENT
• Automotive Ethernet
• UDS
• XCP
• Automotive Power Distribution
• Load Dump Protection
• ISO 7637
• ISO 16750
• Current Sensing Technologies
• Thermal Analysis
• Grounding & Return Path Design

Simulation & Design Tools

• Altium Designer
• LTspice
• PSpice
• SIMetrix
• Databricks

Applied Skills

• Design Verification Planning
• Electronics Characterization
• Test Automation
• Hardware Validation
• Fault Analysis
• Engineering Data Analysis
• Product Reliability Testing
• Firmware Integration Testing
• Design for Testability (DFT)
• Cross-Functional Engineering Support
• Failure Investigation
• Continuous Improvement