Demo

Optical Engineer

Peraton Labs
Woodbridge, NJ Full Time
POSTED ON 4/27/2026
AVAILABLE BEFORE 5/26/2026
About Peraton

Peraton is a next-generation national security company that drives missions of consequence spanning the globe and extending to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. As the world's leading mission capability integrator and transformative enterprise IT provider, we deliver trusted, highly differentiated solutions and technologies to protect our nation and allies. Peraton operates at the critical nexus between traditional and nontraditional threats across all domains: land, sea, space, air, and cyberspace. The company serves as a valued partner to essential government agencies and supports every branch of the U.S. armed forces. Each day, our employees solve the most daunting challenges that our customers face. Visit peraton.com to learn how we're keeping people around the world safe and secure.

Program Overview

About The Role

This position will support the design, development, testing and operational phases of projects

undertaken at Peraton Labs, the research and development arm of the Peraton Corporation. The successful candidate will work closely with a diverse team of engineering, scientific and technical staff to develop novel solutions in support of such projects. The Job Location is the Peraton Labs facility in Woodbridge, NJ.

The successful candidate will possess the ability to work semi-independently in a small multi-disciplinary team utilizing their experience to participate in the analysis, design, prototyping, testing, and maturation of complex systems. Experience modeling and designing systems using tools that correctly represent components in the optical domain that ultimately comprise a field-deployable system is a critical capability for this role. Additional electrical, mechanical, and software modeling and design skills would be considered a plus. The ability to read, comprehend and generate professional quality design documentation is required. The successful candidate will be organized, detail oriented and able to take direction from senior optical engineers and other senior engineering staff.

Duties and Responsibilities Include:

  • Develop concepts and models of optical systems to facilitate lab testing, prototype development and software simulation
  • Interact with vendors to specify and procure both custom and Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) optical components, incoherent light sources, lasers, detectors, camera systems, and mechanical mounting components
  • Execute lab testing to validate designs and test and mature concepts
  • Analyze designs to determine their efficacy in modeling environments such as Zemax, 3DOptix and MODTRAN
  • Generate supporting documentation and reports that represent the system under test, objectives, and results in a concise and understandable manner
  • Summarize and present test results for review by Peraton engineers and customers.

Qualifications

Required Education and Work Experience:

The successful candidate has diversified knowledge of principles and practices in engineering.

A degree in Optical or specialized Mechanical Engineering is required with the following experience levels:

  • BS with 2 or more years of experience
  • MS with 1 or more years of experience

(Experience must be with relevant work in a professional setting)

Required Skills/Attributes:

  • Experience with lab measurement equipment such as optical power meters (thermopiles), photodiodes, oscilloscopes, waveform generators, digital volt meters
  • Experience with lasers as used in lab environments. Understanding and executing safe laser operation using correct Personal Protective Equipment and implementing appropriate laser hazard mitigation methodologies
  • Experience setting up and executing tests using optical engineering equipment such as steering mirrors, beamsplitters, lenses, filters, collimators, diffusers, detectors, etc
  • Experience drawing complete and representative optical models and layouts
  • Proficient in writing technical documentation in MS Word and presenting it in MS PowerPoint
  • Ability to be onsite five days a week when required
  • U. S. Citizenship and ability to obtain a DOD Secret clearance.

Desired Skills/Attributes:

  • Knowledge of optical material properties across various spectral regions
  • Knowledge of appropriate detector materials for various spectral regions
  • Ability to conduct a laser hazard analysis.

SCA / Union / Intern Rate or Range

Details

Target Salary Range: $80,000 - $128,000. This represents the typical salary range for this position. Salary is determined by various factors, including but not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the position, the individual's experience, education, knowledge, skills, and competencies, as well as geographic location and business and contract considerations. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.

Benefits Statement: Peraton offers eligible employees a variety of benefits including medical, dental, vision, life, health savings account, short/long term disability, EAP, parental leave, 401(k), paid time off (PTO) for vacation, and company paid holidays. A full listing of available benefits can be viewed at https://www.careers.peraton.com/benefits.

Application Duration Statement: The application period for the job is estimated to be 30 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

EEO:Equal opportunity employer, including disability and protected veterans, or other characteristics protected by law.

Salary : $80,000 - $128,000

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