About this role
SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.
SR. MATERIALS ENGINEER (STARLINK)
Starlink is building the world's largest satellite constellation to deliver fast, reliable internet to people who need it most—and powering that constellation starts on the factory floor. We are insourcing solar cell manufacturing end-to-end, from crystal growth and ingot production through wafering and cell fabrication to drive performance, cost, and scale at every step. High-efficiency, high-reliability cells made in-house are the backbone of the Starlink network: more photons in means more data out to customers around the world.
As a Sr. Materials Engineer, you will own critical consumables that enable our end-to-end solar cell manufacturing—from ingot growth through wafering and cell fabrication. You will set the technical bar for materials sourcing, qualification, and production hand-off, solving the hardest materials and supply-chain challenges that stand between us and reliable, high-volume cell production. We are looking for a general Materials Engineer who brings deep fundamentals across metals, polymers, crystals, and process consumables—solar experience is welcome but not required. If you are passionate about solving hard problems, anchor your engineering judgment with first principles thinking, and are relentless about acting with urgency, this role is for you.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
• Own and drive strategy for consumable materials across ingot, wafer, and/or solar cell manufacturing lines—from supplier selection and technical evaluation through qualification, production hand-off, and long-term lifecycle management.
• Lead cross-functional efforts with supply chain, process engineering, quality, and production to source, qualify, and dual-source critical materials that reduce risk and support aggressive scale and cost targets.
• Define and own material requirements, specifications, and acceptance criteria; ensure they accurately reflect process needs, quality standards, and manufacturability at rate.
• Architect and execute rigorous material qualification programs—including characterization, process trials, reliability assessment, and production-readiness reviews—then drive clean hand-off into manufacturing.
• Lead root cause investigations to first principles and implement durable, data-driven corrective actions with urgency.
• Apply deep materials fundamentals across metals, polymers, crystals, coatings, and other process consumables to anticipate failure modes, guide selection, and unlock performance or cost gains.
• Identify and champion path-finding material opportunities that deliver measurable improvements in yield, reliability, uptime, and cost.
• Mentor peers and partner teams on materials problem solv