Senior Engineer, Cell Design

Role details

About Us

We are Sila, a next-generation battery materials company. Our mission is to power the world’s transition to clean energy. To create this future, our team is building a better lithium-ion battery from the inside out today. We engineer and manufacture ground-breaking battery materials that significantly increase the energy density of batteries, while reducing their size and weight. The result? Smaller more powerful batteries that can unlock innovation in consumer devices and accelerate the mass adoption of electric cars to eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels. We're tackling one of the biggest challenges of our time every day, and together we're redefining what's possible.

Are you ready to be a part of a team committed to changing the world?

Who You Are

As a Cell Design Engineer on the Slurry & Coating team, you’ll be an integral part of the team working to usher in the next generation batteries for industrial devices. You are curious, enjoy fast-paced learning with multiple projects, are hands-on in the laboratory, and are data-driven. You’ve worked on the different components (anode, cathode, separator, electrolyte, foils) of the lithium-ion battery chemistries through your experience in the industry, and are looking to bring your cell design expertise to help launch commercial products.

You can effectively prioritize your work to meet program objectives, and you’ll work across technical teams and consult with business partners to design experiments, analyze data, and create robust plans to meet our goals and support our internal customer programs or joint development partnerships. You’re an experienced, hands-on, team-oriented engineer with a desire to help deploy the next generation of lithium-ion batteries in industrial devices.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Lead joint development partnerships by facilitating technical meetings, delivering data packages within established timelines, managing partner relationships, and executing experiments aligned with project goals.
• Develop and execute comprehensive experiments in small and prototype full cells, covering a broad range of technical areas including slurry & coating, electrolyte optimization for anode and cathode, cell design and integration, and electrochemical test methods
• Perform thorough failure analysis in small pouch full and prototype cells to identify root causes.
• Apply advanced data analysis, statistical methods, and modeling techniques to interpret test results, predict performance, and inform design iterations
• Effectively communicate ideas, plans, and results to internal stakeholders and support customer / development partner-facing data package preparation
• Accelerate learning cycles by developing new techniques or test methods to detect downstream challenges early in the development
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams at Sila (and as needed with external customers)
• Invest in our company values and vision and demonstrate and support them as we grow

Knowledge and Skill Requirements

• Strong technical background, experience with lithium-ion batteries including different process steps (slurry, coating, cell design and cell tear down) is required
• Well-organized and data-driven approach to problem solving and experimental design, driven by curiosity and attention to detail
• Proficiency in using databases, and data analysis tools such as JMP, Python, etc.
• Exceptional communication abilities with both internal groups and external customers; Korean / Japanese language fluency is a plus
• Ability to carefully plan and implement multiple projects simultaneously
• Understanding of lab safety best practices
• At least a B.S. or M.S. in engineering or science and minimum of 2- 4 years of experience in batteries or related field or PhD graduate with university experiencev

Physical Demands and Working Conditions

• Wear personal protective equipment including, but not limited to, a lab coat, gloves, safety glasses, and steel toe safety shoes
• Operate a computer and other office equipment, such as a laptop, copier/printer, etc in a fixed location
• Move long distances (such as from building to building) and be stationary for extended periods of time
• (As needed) Pass a respirator fit test and be able to wear respiratory protection
• (As needed) Up to 10% domestic and international travel

The starting base pay for this role is between $128,000 and $162,000 at the time of posting. The actual base pay depends on many factors, such as education, experience, and skills. Base pay is only one part of Sila’s competitive Total Rewards package that can include benefits, perks, equity, and bonuses.  The base pay range is subject to change and may be modified in the future.

Working at Sila

We believe that building a diverse team at Sila helps us amplify our individual talents. We are an equal opportunity employer and committed to creating an inclusive environment where good ideas are free to come from anyone. We are proud to celebrate diversity and all qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, national origin, or any other status protected by law.