FPGA Engineering Intern (Comms/TVI)

Thales Defense & Security, Inc. (TDSI) Headquartered in Clarksburg, MD, is a U.S. company that has been serving domestic and international defense Air, Land and Sea domains for 60+ years. With over 1,000 employees, TDSI and its four subsidiaries (Advanced Acoustic Concepts, Digital Receiver Technology, Tampa Microwave, and Trusted Cyber Technologies), supports U.S. Joint Services, special operations forces and multi-national partners with a variety of communication, visualization, signal intelligence/electronic warfare, and sensor/sonar capabilities. TDSI’s key technologies include tactical handheld radios, expeditionary satellite terminals, helmet-mounted displays, optics and target recognition capability, advanced radars, undersea sensing and missile systems. Lives depend on what we do! 

Thales Defense & Security, Inc. has an opening for a DSP/FPGA Engineering intern within the Software Engineering department for 8 weeks during the summer of 2027. This position will be responsible for some entry-level assignments that will provide exposure to the software engineering job family. This position is located in the Clarksburg, MD office and reports to the DSP/FPGA Engineering Manager. 

Responsibilities 

During your summer internship with mission-driven engineers, you will contribute to the design, implementation, and testing of DSP solutions for various mission applications on next generation Software-Defined Radio (SDR) signal processing hardware. Some of the skills you can expect to develop include:

• Understanding the intricacies of DSP algorithms for various SDR applications.
• Learn to develop and implement FPGA-based solutions for signal processing tasks.
• Participate in the verification and testing of DSP/FPGA designs.
• Help document design specifications, test procedures, and results.
• Learn and utilize industry-standard tools for DSP/FPGA development.
• Assisting in the setup and maintenance of DSP lab equipment.

Qualifications

The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

• U.S. Citizenship required. - Applicants selected may be subject to a government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information.
• Must be enrolled in an accredited university or college and have completed at least 2 semesters within the engineering field of study. Electrical Engineering preferred.
• Knowledge of Digital Signal Processing/Digital Communications algorithms and techniques (Turbo/Viterbi coding/decoding, Channel Estimation, Equalization, Filter Design, Resampling Theory etc.)
• Experience with high speed digital interfaces, experience in either/or Xilinx and Altera design.
• Experience coding in Verilog and/or VHDL.
• Familiarity with Matlab or Python required.  C/C++ or other programming languages is desired.
• Understanding of wireless communication theory and signal processing theory is a plus.
• Must be fluent in English, both verbal and written.
• Ability to comply with all Company guidelines, policies, procedures and embrace Company Core Values.  

The hourly pay range for this role is $34.00 - $37.00 USD. The pay range provided is a good faith estimate representative of the experience level for the role described above.  TDSI considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the role, function and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, location, education/training, and key skills. 

For specific questions about this job posting, candidates may contact talent acquisition at [email protected].  

Thales Defense & Security, Inc. is committed to non-discrimination as applicable under federal, state and local laws. We are an E-Verify Employer. 

If you need an accommodation or assistance in order to apply for a position with Thales Defense & Security, Inc., please call Human Resources at 240-864-7000. 

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