Principal Materials Scientist

Role details

A Day in Your Life at MKS:

As a Principal Materials Scientist at MKS Inc., you will partner with Engineering, Product Management, Operations, Quality, and key customers to develop and advance innovative materials solutions that enable next-generation products, technologies, and continuous improvement of current products. You will provide technical leadership in materials research, characterization, process development, and failure analysis while influencing product strategy and technology roadmaps. In this role, you will report to the Director of Advanced Development.

You Will Make an Impact By:

• Leading the research, evaluation, and development of advanced materials, coatings, ceramics, and metals used in MKS products and manufacturing processes.
• Providing technical leadership and subject matter expertise for material selection, qualification, reliability improvement, and root cause investigations.
• Driving innovation initiatives and technology roadmaps to create differentiated materials capabilities and competitive advantages.
• Collaborating with product development, manufacturing, and supply chain teams to optimize product performance, cost, manufacturability, and material availability.
• Designing and executing material characterization, testing, and failure analysis activities utilizing advanced analytical techniques.
• Supporting customer engagements by addressing complex technical challenges and translating customer requirements into material solutions.
• Mentoring engineers and scientists while influencing technical decisions across multiple projects and business functions.
• Publishing technical findings, securing intellectual property, and representing MKS in industry, customer, and academic collaborations.

Travel Requirements: Up to 20% of travel is required.

Skills You Bring:

• Masters in Materials Science, Materials Engineering, Physics, Chemistry, or a closely related technical discipline.
• 12+ years of industry experience in materials research, product development, or advanced technology environments.
• Deep expertise in materials characterization techniques, including microscopy, spectroscopy, surface analysis, and thermal/mechanical testing.
• Demonstrated experience developing and qualifying materials for demanding industrial, semiconductor, electronics, vacuum, plasma, or related applications.
• Strong understanding of materials reliability, degradation mechanisms, and failure analysis methodologies.
• Proven ability to lead complex technical projects and influence decisions across multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and technical leadership skills.
• Track record of innovation demonstrated through patents, publications, technical presentations, or commercialization of new technologies.
• Experience with Design of Experiments (DOE), statistical analysis, and modeling tools.

Preferred Skills: (Optional)

• Ph.D. in Materials Science, Materials Engineering, Physics, Chemistry, or a closely related technical discipline.
• Experience supporting semiconductor capital equipment, advanced packaging, vacuum systems, plasma applications, or advanced manufacturing technologies.
• Expertise in thin films, coatings, surface engineering, ceramics, specialty metals, or advanced composites.
• Knowledge of manufacturing scale-up and materials commercialization processes.
• Experience leading external collaborations with universities, national laboratories, research institutes, or strategic suppliers.
• Demonstrated success developing intellectual property and technology roadmaps.

Supervisory Scope:

• Reporting Relationships: Team leader to other material scientists and test engineering
• Technical Leadership: Responsibilities across multiple projects and teams.
• Financial Responsibilities: Provides technical guidance on technology investments, material qualification activities, and development programs.

Physical Demands and Working Conditions:

• Ability to work in laboratory, manufacturing, and office environments.
• Ability to occasionally lift up to 25 pounds and operate laboratory equipment.
• Periodic use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in laboratory and manufacturing areas.
• May be exposed to chemicals, gases, vacuum systems, and other engineering laboratory environments following established safety procedures.
• Frequent interaction with cross-functional teams, customers, suppliers, and external research partners.

Compensation and Benefits

Salary Pay Range

: $126,200.00 - 210,350.00 USD per year. This range is a good faith estimate of the expected salary range for this position, based on a wide range of factors including qualifications, experience and training, operational and business needs and other considerations permitted by law.

Bonus

: This position is eligible for a discretionary annual bonus, in an amount to be determined by MKS \[or as applicable].

Benefits

: MKS offers a comprehensive benefits package, including health insurance coverage (medical, dental and vision), 401(k) with company match, life and disability insurance, 12 paid holidays, sick time, 15 paid vacation days, \[6 weeks fully paid] parental leave, adoption assistance and tuition reimbursement \[and for participation in any stock programs, signing bonus, etc.