The South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) seeks to make an appointment for the position of RFElectronics Technician. The main purpose of the job is to focus on the electronics and embedded software systems of the radio telescopes. Working on the antennas and in the lab to troubleshoot, repair and upgrade electronic systems used for monitoring and control by utilising typical lab equipment such as multimeters, soldering stations, oscilloscopes and power supplies.<\/p>\n
Key Responsibilities:
\nTechnical work and housekeeping<\/p>\n
\tAntenna maintenance, predominantly focusing on electronic components and microelectronics but also hands on work.
\n\tTraining and mentoring of students and other inexperienced members of staff
\n\tProcurement, documentation, and record-keeping<\/p>\n
Key Requirements:
\nQualification:<\/p>\n
\tNational Diploma (Electrical-light current or Electronics) NQF Level 6
\n\t2 years\u00b7minimum experience<\/p>\n
Experience:<\/p>\n
\tGovernment procurement processes
\n\tGood knowledge of antennas and related infrastructure (vacuum, helium, cryogenic systems)
\n\tTechnical knowledge and experience in a research and development environment<\/p>\n
Knowledge:<\/p>\n
\tElectronic components
\n\tPCB Design
\n\tKnowledge of a wide range of electronics (analogue and digital) and radio frequency principles.
\n\tFiber optic termination and splicing
\n\tProgramming experience (including microcontrollers)
\n\tMicroprocessor hardware and software
\n\tElectronic fault finding
\n\tMechanical systems basics<\/p>\n
Additional Notes:<\/p>\n
\tMust be physically fit and able to work at heights and in small confined spaces
\n\tAble to operate a mobile truck mounted crane
\n\tProgramming languages (e.g. Python, C)
\n\tPCB software (e.g. Altium, Design spark)
\n\tSoldering and desoldering of through hole and surface mount components
\n\tTesting of components
\n\tUse of standard electronic lab equipment (oscilloscope, multimeter)
\n\tExperience in building \u00b4one off type\u03bcprojects (good wiring skills and PCB layout design).
\n\tHealth and safety basics.
\n\tProcurement of spares, equipment and components by following company SCM practices.
\n\tElectronic repairs down to component level including surface mount components.
\n\tAble to maintain and repair complex electronic systems used in radio astronomy and geodesy research
\n\tBuild new electronic and radio frequency subsystems<\/p>\n
Deadline:3rd September,2025<\/p>\n
go to method of application \u00bb<\/p>\n
Apply via company website ( N \/ A ) or<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"_promoted":"","_job_location":"","_application":"","_company_name":"SARAO - South African Radio Astronomy Observatory","_company_website":"http:\/\/N%20\/%20A","_company_tagline":"The South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO), a facility of the National Research Foundation, is responsible for managing all radio astronomy initiatives and facilities in South Africa, including the MeerKAT Radio Telescope in the Karoo, and the Geodesy and VLBI activities at the HartRAO fa... read morecility. SARAO also coordinates the African Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network (AVN) for the eight SKA partner countries in Africa, as well as South Africa\u2019s contribution to the infrastructure and engineering planning for the Square Kilometre Array Radio Telescope. To maximise the return on South Africa\u2019s investment in radio astronomy, SARAO is managing programmes to create capacity in radio astronomy science and engineering research, and the technical capacity required to support site operations.","_company_twitter":"","_company_video":"","_filled":0,"_featured":0,"_remote_position":0,"_job_salary":"","_job_salary_currency":"","_job_salary_unit":""},"job_listing_region":[11],"job-types":[12],"class_list":["post-16989","job_listing","type-job_listing","status-expired","hentry","job_listing_region-gauteng","job-type-full-time"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobs.dataaxisnode.com\/southafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/job-listings\/16989","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobs.dataaxisnode.com\/southafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/job-listings"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobs.dataaxisnode.com\/southafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/job_listing"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobs.dataaxisnode.com\/southafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobs.dataaxisnode.com\/southafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"job_listing_region","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobs.dataaxisnode.com\/southafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/job_listing_region?post=16989"},{"taxonomy":"job_listing_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobs.dataaxisnode.com\/southafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/job-types?post=16989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}