Applications Engineer Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

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Full Time Chino, CA, US

9 days ago Requisition ID: 1273

Salary Range: $100,000.00 To $130,000.00 Annually

Compensation is commensurate with education, years of experience and relevant experience.

Luna Innovations Incorporated (Luna) is a global leader in fiber optic test and measurement and distributed sensing, trusted by aerospace manufacturers, defense contractors, research institutions, and commercial operators worldwide. We are a team of innovators who engineer, manufacture, and relentlessly pursue quality, driven by a shared commitment to exceeding our customers’ expectations.

Luna Innovations' Optical Communications Business Unit (OCT BU) develops and markets a portfolio of precision photonic instruments, polarization components, and OEM fiber optic solutions used in next-generation optical communications, sensing, and test & measurement applications. The Chino, CA facility is home to the polarization product lines, including polarization controllers, analyzers, and specialty fiber components.

This is a software-first Applications Engineer role, bringing deep automation and test software expertise to our polarization instrument product lines, building customer-ready measurement workflows, automated test sequences, and application software that accelerates adoption in our target markets. The ideal candidate is a strong programmer and systems thinker who is comfortable in a photonics environment; deep polarization domain knowledge is not required on day one and will be developed in partnership with the existing team. This position sits within the Support & Application Engineering organization (OCT BU), complementing our senior polarization AE's deep optical expertise with software and automation capability.

Target application areas include: Photonic Integrated Circuit (PIC) and Silicon Photonics test; Optical WDM Component Test (AWGs, WSS); Optical Coherent Transceiver and Module Test (400G/800G/1.6T); Optical Component Test (fibers, coils, lasers, switches); and Quantum Technologies.

• Serve as the primary technical resource for customer application inquiries related to Chino polarization product lines
• Support sales team with pre-sales technical engagement, product demonstrations, and evaluation support
• Attend and represent Luna at industry tradeshows and customer events (e.g., OFC, Photonics West)
• Manage and document customer interactions and application engineering requests through Salesforce CRM

Application Development

• Develop and demonstrate application setups that showcase Luna product capabilities in target markets
• Build and deliver customer-ready measurement automation scripts and test sequences (Python, LabVIEW) - enabling repeatable workflows and reducing customer time-to-result in production and test environments
• Identify emerging use cases and work with engineering to ensure new products address evolving customer needs
• Support OEM customers through product transitions, integration challenges, and qualification activities

Content & Knowledge Development

• Create and maintain application notes, technical presentations, and product training materials
• Develop demo scripts and evaluation guides to enable self-service and accelerate customer onboarding
• Contribute to internal knowledge base and best practices documentation

Cross-functional Collaboration

• Collaborate with engineering to communicate field feedback, application requirements, and product issues
• Participate in OEM account tracking and escalation processes alongside Application Engineering team
• Contribute to instrument demo pool management and demo readiness

RIO Laser Products Support (Secondary, ~10-20%)

• Provide application engineering support for RIO Lasers' narrow linewidth laser diode and module product lines
• Support customer inquiries related to OEM laser integration, linewidth, phase noise, and system-level application questions

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Optical Engineering, or a related field
• Strong software and programming skills (Python, LabVIEW, MATLAB, or similar) - demonstrated ability to build automated test sequences, instrument control applications, and measurement workflows from scratch
• 2-7 years of experience in a test automation, applications engineering, or systems engineering role - experience in a photonics or instrumentation environment is a plus but not required
• Strong customer communication skills - able to present technical content clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences
• Familiarity with photonic components, fiber optic systems, or optical instrumentation - willingness and ability to develop deep application knowledge in polarization measurement
• Experience working with CRM tools (Salesforce preferred) for case tracking and activity documentation

• Experience with polarization optics, polarization measurement, or polarization control systems
• Familiarity with coherent optical communications, optical testing, or fiber sensing applications
• Experience with narrow linewidth laser sources and OEM photonic component integration
• Prior experience creating technical content - application notes, training materials, or product documentation
• Familiarity with OEM customer environments and qualification/transition processes

In the first 6-12 months, a successful candidate will:

• Become the go-to technical resource for the Chino polarization product lines for both customers and the sales team
• Have a working demo environment established, at least one application note completed, and at least one reusable measurement automation script or workflow delivered to a customer
• Be actively managing and documenting application engineering requests in Salesforce
• Have established working familiarity with the RIO laser product line and begun supporting customer inquiries

Luna Innovations is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Luna provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, age, disability, gender identity, genetic information, or veteran status. Equal employment opportunity applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leave of absence, compensation, and training. Luna expressly prohibits any form of unlawful employee harassment or discrimination.