Battery Cell Materials Engineer Jobs in Virginia

At Vertical Aerospace, we are pioneering the way for electric aviation. The Valo, our eVTOL (electric, vertical, take-off and landing), 'zero emissions' aircraft will set a new safety standard for how we will navigate the sky.

We won't realise our mission following the same legacy processes and traditions our predecessors followed, instead, we want to 'redefine' aerospace best practices. We are growing quickly from a prototype business to a scaling SME, and the next few years will be critical to our success and delivering on our ambitious goals. Valo is targeting airliner-level safety certification in 2028 ahead of entering service with our airline and operator customers.

As an Senior Cell Engineer, you'll play a key role in qualifying commercial lithium-ion cells for use in our next-generation electric aircraft. Working closely with engineers, technicians, suppliers and research partners, you'll generate the evidence needed to support safe, high-performance battery systems.

• Developing qualification methods for commercial lithium-ion cells, covering electrochemistry, electrical testing and data analysis.
• Designing test plans, communicating test requirements to engineers and technicians, and analysing and reporting results.
• Developing and optimising data analysis tools for electrical, safety and materials test data, including statistical analysis.
• Working with industrial and academic partners to plan and deliver cell testing and analysis activities.
• Generating and managing cell requirements and supporting associated verification and validation activities through testing, modelling and analysis.Supporting system-level requirement verification across the battery programme.
• Supporting the management of cell suppliers and contributing to our cell sourcing strategy.
• Contributing across the wider electrochemistry team, supporting performance, lifetime, safety, quality and future cell technology evaluation.

• Degree, MSc or PhD (or equivalent experience) in Electrochemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science or a related discipline.
• Strong understanding of lithium-ion cell electrochemistry, cell performance, degradation mechanisms and design trade-offs.
• 1-2 years' experience working with commercial lithium-ion cells.
• Experience designing and analysing lithium-ion electrical test programmes, including Design of Experiments (DoE).
• Strong experience analysing lithium-ion cell data.
• Good understanding of how lithium-ion cells integrate into larger battery systems.
• Ability to work independently while collaborating effectively across multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, evolving environment with changing priorities.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a proactive, hands‑on approach.

• Experience with requirements management or systems engineering (e.g. FMEA, FTA).
• Familiarity with equivalent circuit models (ECM), thermal equivalent circuit models (TECM) or empirical lifetime modelling.
• Experience qualifying lithium-ion cells for industrial applications such as electric vehicles or aerospace.
• Experience handling large datasets and developing data analysis pipelines.
• Hands‑on experience with electrical cell testing, materials characterisation or cell forensic analysis.
• Experience working with large-scale cell suppliers.
• Aerospace industry experience.

We're on a mission. Where others see limits, we see opportunity, and we work at pace. Working at Vertical isn't your average role but for those seeking a challenge, a flexible, supportive organisation and an incredible team; working here is an opportunity to do the best work of your career.

Our approach promotes ingenuity and courage, while our environment builds success through diligence in safety and being open in the way we work. The only way we're going to assure the next chapter of aviation history is by working as a team, relentlessly, towards our goal.

• 26 days holiday, plus bank holiday
• 5 extra days per year to buy (or sell)
• 5 extra days holiday when you get married or enter a civil partnership
• Additional 4% of your salary to spend on extra benefits
• Award‑winning digital health and well‑being service (Help@Hand)
• Company performance based bonus - rewarding company and individual performance
• Company Share Scheme - open to every Vertical employee
• Company Pension Scheme - 5% and we match it
• Breakfast on us, every day

We may just be the hardest job you've ever had, but we're confident it will be the most rewarding. Join the team today and help us shape the future of Advanced Air Mobility.

We encourage you to apply even if you may not have all the experience listed in the advert. We recognise that talent comes in various forms and we are committed to providing opportunities that create an environment of growth, diversity, and inclusion for everyone. As part of our desire to review and make our processes fair, we may ask you questions related to these aspects during the application process. For more information on how we will use your data, see our Legal section.