Principal RF Systems Engineer at X4 Technology, Cambridge, £60+ per hour

🚀 Principal RF Systems Engineer | Advanced Wireless Test & Measurement

We’re a specialist engineering team developing next-generation RF analysis and measurement platforms used to design, validate, and characterise cutting-edge wireless systems.

Our work sits at the intersection of RF hardware, digital design, FPGA engineering, embedded systems, and signal processing — building sophisticated instrumentation from first principles rather than iterating on existing tools.

We’re looking for a Principal RF Systems Engineer to take a leading role in shaping the architecture of new wireless test platforms. This is a hands-on technical leadership position with broad scope across system design, implementation, and validation.

📍 Hybrid (UK-based, Cambridge area) | Flexible working with in-office collaboration required

🔧 What you’ll be doing

• Defining RF and mixed-signal system architectures for new measurement and analysis platforms
• Designing high-performance RF and digital hardware systems operating at GHz frequencies
• Contributing across FPGA, DSP, firmware, or embedded software development where needed
• Leading prototype bring-up, debugging, and system-level validation
• Developing calibration and characterisation approaches for RF performance
• Working closely with cross-disciplinary engineers across RF, digital, software, and signal processing domains
• Providing technical leadership and mentoring within the engineering team
• Driving innovation in wireless test and measurement technology

🎯 What we’re looking for

• Degree in Electronic Engineering, Physics, or a related technical discipline
• Strong background in RF electronics and wireless system design
• Experience specifying and delivering complex RF systems
• Hands-on RF circuit design experience at 2.4GHz or 5GHz - 7GHz frequencies
• Strong understanding of RF metrics (noise figure, linearity, dynamic range, phase noise, etc.)
• Confident using lab equipment (spectrum analysers, VNAs, signal generators, oscilloscopes)
• Experience debugging and characterising high-frequency PCB designs (Altium preferred)
• Ability to operate as both a hands-on engineer and technical decision-maker

🌟 Nice to have

• FPGA development experience (e.g. Xilinx toolchains, Verilog/SystemVerilog/VHDL)
• DSP or communications/modem implementation experience
• Python scripting for automation or test
• Wireless protocols (e.g. short-range or cellular PHY experience)
• Antenna and RF front-end design
• High-speed digital interfaces (USB3, PCIe, etc.)
• Embedded C/C++ development
• PCB layout / signal integrity awareness

💡 About the role

This is a rare opportunity to work at deep implementation level on advanced wireless instrumentation systems. You’ll help shape architecture and product direction while staying close to the engineering detail — from RF hardware through to digital signal processing and system integration.

The client are paying a high rate of £60+ per hour, are happy with majority remote working and the position has been QDOS assessed as OUTSIDE IR35.

If you enjoy solving complex, real-world RF and wireless engineering problems and want to influence how next-generation test systems are built, this is a strong fit.