Battery Engineering Internship, Electrochemistry & Simulations

Job Description

Job DescriptionAbout Us

We are Sila, a next-generation battery materials company. Our mission is to power the world's transition to clean energy. To create this future, our team is building a better lithium-ion battery from the inside out today. We engineer and manufacture ground-breaking battery materials that significantly increase the energy density of batteries, while reducing their size and weight. The result? Smaller more powerful batteries that can unlock innovation in consumer devices and accelerate the mass adoption of electric cars to eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels. We're tackling one of the biggest challenges of our time every day, and together we're redefining what's possible. Are you ready to be a part of a team committed to changing the world?

Who You Are

Are you a thoughtful, creative, diligent, and curious battery engineer or material scientist with strong foundational knowledge in electrochemistry?

Are you excited at the prospect of helping to build the next generation of battery materials and technologies? Sila Nanotechnologies is seeking a battery engineer and electrochemists to:

1. Help us build foundational battery models with strong mechanistic fidelity.
2. Help develop electrochemical test protocols to isolate intrinsic material properties.
3. Design experiments to bridge understanding on how material properties manifest in different cell design formats.
4. Leverage key insights from our battery models to accelerate learning cycles and reduce the cost of empirical R&D.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Spend a minimum of 6 months onsite at Sila, beginning in June 2026, to work full-time in this hands-on role.
• Investigate electrochemical test protocols in a wide variety of battery cell formats to isolate active electrode material intrinsic properties.
• Test different battery modeling algorithms to build foundational models with high mechanistic fidelity.
• Develop workflow for parametrization of active battery materials and predictive battery simulations.
• Bridge knowledge of performance bottlenecks across different battery cell formats.
• Thoroughly document and present results, with conclusions and recommendations, to engineering mentors, management and other stakeholders.

Knowledge and Skill Requirements

• Studying toward a PhD degree in chemical engineering, materials science, chemistry, or related fields.
• Prior experience working in battery-related academic and/or industrial research & development environments.
• Prior experience with electrochemical and material science characterization methods.
• Prior experience with Python and modeling software like Pybamm and/or COMSOL.
• Strong foundational knowledge in Bayesian statistics and machine learning is a plus.
• Exceptional analytical and documentation skills.
• Ability to learn new skills and ask for help when needed.
• Capable of working independently with direction.

Physical Demands and Working Conditions

• Wear personal protective equipment including, but not limited to, a lab coat, gloves, safety glasses, and steel toe safety shoes.
• Precise and repetitive handling of a range of material quantities.
• Use a fume hood to prepare samples.
• Operate analytical equipment at a bench.
• Move long distances (such as from building to building) and be stationary for extended periods of time.
• Operate a computer and other office equipment, such as a laptop, copier/printer, etc in a fixed location.

The starting base pay for this role is between $25/hr and $39/hr at the time of posting. The actual base pay depends on many factors, such as education, experience, and skills. Base pay is only one part of Sila's competitive Total Rewards package that can include benefits, perks, and equity. The base pay range is subject to change and may be modified in the future. This role may also be eligible for overtime.

Working at Sila

We believe that building a diverse team at Sila helps us amplify our individual talents. We are an equal opportunity employer and committed to creating an inclusive environment where good ideas are free to come from anyone. We are proud to celebrate diversity and all qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, national origin, or any other status protected by law.