Electrical Technician

About Periodic Labs

Periodic Labs is building an autonomous laboratory for high-throughput materials discovery. Our work combines advanced chemistry, robotics, automation, AI, and materials science to accelerate scientific discovery while maintaining high standards of environmental, health, and process safety.

We are seeking a hands-on electrical technician who enjoys working with instrumentation, electro-/mechanical systems, and characterization tools - someone who values attention to detail, documentation, and a dynamic lab environment.

Responsibilities

Provide electrical, instrumentation, and controls technician support to engineers and scientific staff

Assist with integrating custom electrical equipment and fixtures, electrical enclosures, and instrumentation/hardware with engineer-provided concepts, sketches, and verbal direction

Perform basic electrical calculations using standard engineering formulas

Interpret electrical drawings and other technical information

Maintain systems documentation, bill-of-materials, and drawings to keep documentation current, visible, and traceable

Incorporate redlines and design changes from engineers

Qualifications & Skills

Required:

Prior experience as a qualified electrical worker for 208V or above

Hands‑on instrumentation & controls experience, including low-voltage (24VDC) wiring and controls enclosure fabrication

Experience with field wiring and panel wiring

Familiarity with electrical schematics

Experience with Lock-Out-Tag-Out (LOTO) safety practices and procedures

Good documentation skills, ability to follow protocols, and write clear notes/task summaries

Flexibility and ability to adapt to evolving processes and workflows typical of a startup/ research‑oriented lab

Preferred Qualifications

Experience in wiring and integrating mass flow controllers (MFCs), pressure transducers, solenoid valves, thermocouples, and various control instrumentation and hardware

Comfort with physically wiring various digital and analog input/output devices, lab instrumentation, and controls fieldbuses (e.g., EtherCAT, RS-232/-485, Modbus)

Experience selecting appropriate electrical supplies, wire/cable, enclosure components (e.g., relays, circuit breakers, terminal blocks)

Comfort troubleshooting instruments or basic electro-/mechanical maintenance

Familiarity with NFPA70 (NEC), UL508A, or NFPA79

Nice to Have

Experience with vacuum systems, gloveboxes, and inert atmosphere processing

Familiarity with AutoCAD (preferably electrical), redlining schematics, and building to print

Familiarity with Beckhoff IPCs, input/output modules, and EtherCAT fieldbus

What You'll Gain

Hands‑on experience working at the cutting edge of materials discovery (superconductors, novel compounds)

Exposure to a broad set of material characterization techniques and workflows (from synthesis to cryogenic measurements)

Opportunity to help build lab SOPs, workflows, and influence lab design and automation controls development/deployment strategy

Collaborative environment with scientists, engineers, and automation experts — good learning and growth potential

Satisfaction of bridging materials science, synthesis, measurement, and data-driven R&D

Hands-on experience designing, fabricating, and troubleshooting cutting-edge electrical systems for laboratory instrumentation and automation

Mechanics

Role Type : Contract position. Initial term of 12 months with potential to extend or convert based on lab needs and performance

Location: Menlo Park, CA

Compensation: The annual compensation range for this role is $124,000-$153,600

Work authorization : Must be authorized to work in the U.S. for the duration of the contract. Visa sponsorship is not available for this position

We’re building a team of the world’s best - the scientists, engineers, and problem-solvers who don’t just follow the frontier; they define it. If you’re driven to bring AI to life in the physical world and make discoveries that have never been made before, you belong here.