Our team and mission

The Radio Frequency Systems Division is responsible for space instrumentation and end-to-end communication systems, subsystems, and equipment and technologies, covering the following:

• Telecommunications system and subsystem design and validation.
• Radio navigation system and subsystem design and validation.
• Commercial ground and user segment products for navigation, telecommunications and remote sensing.
• Systems for tracking, telemetry and command (TT&C) and payload data transmission (PDT) for communication, navigation, remote sensing and scientific applications.
• Security engineering, research and development in all of the above areas, and in general for any space applications, projects and missions.
• Systems testing for performance evaluation and validation.
• Laboratories to test/prove the soundness of concepts and validate them.

This position will be shared between the Systems Security Engineering Section (TEC-ESS) and the Telecom Systems Section (TEC-ESC).

TEC-ESS is responsible for the security engineering processes, techniques and technologies dealing with the security of systems from the end-to-end point of view, as well as the subsystems, the elements and equipment contributing or implementing specific detection/mitigation and protection measures, and the analysis and methodology for vulnerability assessments and standards, including system design tools and equipment. TEC-ESS provides functional support to ESA projects in the area of system security engineering and cyber security and carries out technological research and development (R&D) in the field of security for space systems and missions. 

TEC-ESC is responsible for satcom system architectures and end-to-end communication systems, subsystems, equipment and technologies, covering in particular the following fields of technical competence:

• End-to-end performance analysis and follow-up of equipment design for critical communication aspects of satellite missions.
• Satellite access techniques.
• Networking, traffic engineering, protocol design and verification.
• Modulation, coding, synchronisation and signal processing techniques.
• Wideband digital techniques required by next generation satcom.
• Software tools for system and subsystem theoretical analysis and simulation.
• Economic evaluation and risk hedging of communications satellite missions.

You are encouraged to visit the ESA website: https://www.esa.int/

Field(s) of activity/research for the traineeship

The rollout and adoption of fifth generation (5G) mobile networks has dominated the telecommunications sector in recent years. New advances in 5G standards are creating opportunities to integrate non-terrestrial networks (NTN) into an interoperable, standardised wireless experience across the globe. 5G technology is expected to benefit IRIS² (Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite), the new EU secure satellite constellation that aims to offer enhanced communication capacities to governmental users and businesses, while ensuring high-speed internet broadband to cope with connectivity dead zones. While 5G NTN standardisation is still evolving, various aspects related to secure development and deployment still need to be explored.

As an Internal Research Fellow at the Radio Frequency Systems Division/Systems Security Engineering Section, you will have the unique opportunity to work on cutting-edge research on 5G/6G systems in general and 5G/6G NTN in particular, contributing to the related ongoing standardisation efforts and helping shape the future of modern, space satellite communications.

In particular, your research activities will be to: 

• monitor the latest standards on 5G/6G NTN and the relevant R&D to assess the related security across all layers, while identifying and proposing solutions.
• perform, in a laboratory setting, experimentation and testing of various implementations to confirm the exploitation of identified security issues, identify their impact, and verify the effectiveness of the proposed security countermeasures.
• contribute to proposals for standardisation to the relevant forums.
• monitor current developments and implementations on the topic.

Technical competencies

Behavioural competencies

Result Orientation
Operational Efficiency
Fostering Cooperation
Relationship Management
Continuous Improvement
Forward Thinking 

Education

You should have recently completed or be close to completing a PhD in telecommunications (preferably on 5G).
Preference will be given to applications submitted by candidates who have received their PhD within the past five years.

Additional requirements

• Good knowledge and understanding of security aspects, potential attacks and countermeasures in modern telecommunication systems
• Knowledge of modern applied cryptography
• Programming capabilities
• General interest in space and space research

The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another Member State language would be an asset.