Free Space Optical Comms Systems Engineer

Job Description:

Are you a Systems Engineer who loves contributing to the UKs Defence Industry and making impactful change? Leonardo has a fantastic opportunity for an Engineer to work on the modelling of airborne Free Space Optical Communication systems. You will be working on real Engineering problems, designing and developing solutions that sit at the heart of our products.

Your Impact

Our Systems Engineers span across range of activities that help pull together all the necessary engineering and technology strands into a high-performance system. As a Systems Engineer, you will bridge the gap between the theoretically possible and the practically implementable. The successful candidate work with sub-contractors and industry partners to construct a model, devise and run experiments and interpret the results.

What you'll do

• Build an optical laboratory for investigating the performance of optical communication systems
• Build and maintain MATLAB models of optical based airborne communication systems.
• Investigate new approaches to achieve the customer’s requirements
• Guide the development of free-space optical communication systems
• Discuss the experiments and results internally and with external stakeholders including customers, external partners and subcontractors.
• Work cooperatively with subcontractors and international partners to achieve a common solution.
• Assembling, integrating and testing subsystems.
• Provide input to a proposal to create an internationally recognised standard for Optical Communications.

What you'll bring

Successful candidates will have a strong technical background in an engineering, physics or maths-based subject. System-wide understanding of optical communication systems, with an ability to assess the performance of all the subsystems that comprise an optical communication system is also essential, including:

• Lasers
• Modulators
• Detectors
• Optical Amplifiers
• Wavelength filters
• Polarisation controllers
• Experience working in an optical laboratory, ideally with experience in aligning free-space setups and coupling into optical fibres
• Experience with model development in a high-level programming language
• The ability to perform rigorous analysis independently and confidently present the results internally and externally

It would be nice if you had knowledge/experience of:

• MATLAB
• Software engineering techniques, such as test development and version control (git)
• Laboratory automation
• Digital Modulation, Channel coding, and other aspects of the physical layer of a communication system
• Assessing the performance of optical communication systems considering the SNR, BER and bandwidth limitations
• Development of free-space optical communication systems for deployment in field environments
• Resiliency strategies and techniques in free-space optical communications
• Working as a member of a large team in developing complex engineered systems
• Understanding of the optomechanical considerations for field deployment of optical systems

 This is not an exhaustive list, and we are keen to hear from you even if you might not have experience in all the above. The most important skill is a good attitude and willingness to learn.

Security Clearance

Successful candidates will be UK nationals. This role is subject to pre-employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply, this could include meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV). For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting

Why join us

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work–life balance. Whether you're looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we’re here to help you thrive.

• Time to Recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-days each year.
• Secure your Future: Benefit from our award-winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.
• Your Wellbeing Matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee-led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity).
• Rewarding Performance: All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme.
• Never Stop Learning: Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning.
• Refer a friend: Receive a financial reward through our referral programme.
• Tailored Perks: Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.
• Flexible working: Flexible hours with hybrid working options. For part time opportunities, please talk to us about what might be possible for this role.

For a full list of our company benefits please visit our website.

Leonardo UK operates a grade-based salary framework with broad bands. The salary range shown reflects the approved grade band for this role, or a narrower hiring range published within that band, and is benchmarked against the external market. Exceptions above the standard range are managed through governance controls to protect internal equity.

Leonardo is a global leader in Aerospace, Defence, and Security. Headquartered in Italy, we employ over 53,000 people worldwide including 8,500 across 9 sites in the UK. Our employees are not just part of a team—they are key contributors to shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.

Be part of something bigger - apply now!

Primary Location:

GB - Southampton

Contract Type:

Permanent

Hybrid Working:

Hybrid