Principal Antenna Design Engineer - Denver, CO, United States
$148,100 - $192,500 USD yearly
Originally posted 20 August 2026 by the employer.
About the role
As Principal Antenna Design Engineer, you will design, analyze, prototype, and test mmWave printed circuit board-based phased array antenna solutions. This role focuses on developing advanced phased array antenna solutions for Satellite Communications, Line-of-Sight Communications, Radar, and other defense and aerospace applications.
What you'll do
- Design PCB-based antenna elements and arrays for mmWave operation, including analysis of array-level efficiency, gain, scan performance.
- Model RF and mmWave components, including PCB mmWave transitions, connector matching networks, filters, tuning networks, and related structures, using AWR, CST, and/or HFSS.
- Design passive circuit components such as power splitters/combiners, microstrip and stripline transmission lines, and impedance transformers using AWR, CST, and/or HFSS.
- Support over-the-air test development for new waveforms and test conditions, including hands-on testing of RF and mmWave phased array antennas.
- Support test and troubleshooting of new mmWave phased array prototypes, including power supplies, control circuits, and RF/mmWave circuits, and perform power integrity analysis on prototype boards.
- Develop, maintain, and update cascaded system design tools to track linear and nonlinear RF, IF, and DC performance of mmWave phased array antenna prototypes using Qorvo ICs.
What you'll need
- Bachelor's degree (BSEE or equivalent) with a minimum of twelve+ years of experience.
- Prior design experience with RF/mmWave phased array antenna components.
- Experience using AWR, CST, and/or HFSS.
- Experience testing RF and mmWave circuits, coupons, and systems.
- Experience with scripting or programming using a language such as Python.
Nice to have
- Experience designing Antenna in Package (AiP) structures for high-volume applications.
- Experience transitioning RF/mmWave designs from prototype through production release.
- Familiarity with RF system budgeting, cascaded analysis, gain/noise/IP3 tradeoffs, and link budget development.
Skills: PCB-based antenna, mmWave, phased array, AWR, CST, HFSS, RF/mmWave circuits
This role has been open 45 days — below the 51-day median for RF/Wireless Engineering roles.
RF/Wireless Engineering · RF Frontend
|
Open roles in category
265
|
Median days open
51 d
|
Median salary
$162k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | QORVO | All employers we track in this specialty (265 roles · 34 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 46 | 265 |
| Open roles in the wider Analog & Mixed-Signal family | 74 | 1387 · 106 employers |
| Median days open | 35 d | 51 d (−16 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $162k |
Skills observed across this category: PCB-based antenna, mmWave, phased array, AWR, CST, HFSS, RF/mmWave circuits
Who's hiring in this category
- QORVO (this employer) · 46 open roles · median 35 d
- Skyworks · 41 open roles · median 40 d
- Keysight Technologies · 24 open roles · median 174 d
- Qualcomm · 24 open roles · median 102 d
- Apple · 20 open roles · median 19 d
- Analog Devices · 12 open roles · median 57 d
How we counted: 265 open RF/Wireless Engineering (RF Frontend) roles from 34 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 5 Oct 2026. Specialty figures count only roles carrying this exact specialty label, so an employer's related work in neighbouring specialties is not included there — it is counted in the wider Analog & Mixed-Signal family row. Figures refresh nightly.