My Work

Hardware, firmware, and the science underneath — I work across all three layers, from the bench to the publication.

Electrical lab technician and embedded systems developer with 3+ years of R&D across clean energy, defense, and spectroscopic materials science — and the product side to match: I take hardware from breadboard to shipped product, including the full-stack mobile app and cloud platform behind Pii Energy's Edge 2000. First author on a NASA/NSF-funded solar spectroscopy poster and NSF-funded co-author on two more spanning glass physics, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and plasma science. Day to day I'm at the bench with high-spectral-resolution optical instruments, custom electronics, and hazardous-material handling — or in the codebase turning prototypes into products people actually use. Former researcher at the National Solar Observatory and Lockheed Martin.

3+ yrsR&D experience
3published posters
First AuthorNASA / NSF
Hardware · Firmware · Cloud
U.S. Citizen · Clearance-eligible

Work Experience

Senior Electrical Lab Technician · GridFlow

Sept 2024 – Present · Albuquerque, NM

Clean energy startup focused on vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) systems for long-duration commercial energy storage.

Spearhead end-to-end R&D lab operations — prototype build, electrical assembly, structured test execution, and real-time diagnostics.
Fabricate and test battery system prototypes including peristaltic pump systems, custom PCBs, wiring harnesses, and IoT safety monitoring devices.
Driving 0-to-1 development of VRFB systems — coordinating cross-disciplinary teams of mechanical and chemical engineers from concept to working prototype.
Authored production SOPs covering hardware assembly (enclosures, manifolds, cell stacks) and electrolyte preparation — establishing repeatable, audit-ready processes for a first-of-kind system.
Integrate sensors (current, voltage, temperature, GPS) with ESP32 and Particle Photon over BLE/Wi-Fi; develop firmware in C++ and Arduino IDE.
Operate DAQ systems; write Python for automated data logging, anomaly detection, and charge/discharge cycle analysis.
Manage all lab safety protocols for hazardous materials (argon, nitrogen, lithium, vanadium electrolyte) — glovebox (VAC) operations, LOTO, ESD compliance.
Built public demo units including an Earth Day Conference exhibit with laser-cut acrylic fabrication and full system integration.

With a teammate reviewing notes in the GridFlow lab

Lead Software Developer · Pii Energy

Jan 2025 – Present · Albuquerque, NM

GridFlow's residential plug-in home energy product line. Edge 2000 launched Pi Day 2025 — featured in PV Magazine.

Architect and develop a full-stack energy management system tracking solar, battery, and grid power with real-time monitoring, room-based outlet control, and overcurrent detection.
Investigated and integrated the EcoFlow BKW API for output power control; built the backend on AWS — API Gateway HTTP APIs fronting Lambda functions for business logic and data access.
Produce a technical LinkedIn video series communicating energy system design to professional and consumer audiences.

App icon

Pii Energy app onboarding — Welcome to Pii Energy: your solar & energy command centre

Welcome screen

Dashboard · energy flow

Pii Energy app Meter screen — real-time solar, battery, and grid telemetry

Live meter — solar · battery · grid

Pii Energy app New Automation screen — device, action, and geofence

Geofence-aware automations

Tap for sound App walkthrough

Edge 2000 — plug-in solar + storage on a downtown balcony

Edge 2000 · balcony install

IoT & Software Developer · Telemetry Insight

Apr 2024 – Sept 2024 · Albuquerque, NM

Developed and maintained Well Watcher telemetry code for real-time monitoring of industrial well controllers.
Supported product development as an IoT technician — bench-testing Well Watcher field hardware, refining telemetry behavior, and helping push new controller features toward release.
Implemented BLE features (Tx Power monitoring, battery life analysis); led software testing for new controller features.

Image Creation Developer — DevOps · Lockheed Martin

Jan 2023 – May 2023 · Remote

Participated in OS image development and troubleshooting for cloud and on-prem Windows/Linux environments in a defense contractor setting.
Gained experience with scripting, TCP/IP networks, virtualization, and purpose-built OS configurations.

Projects

Things I've built end-to-end — hardware, firmware, and the software underneath.

Smart Plant — IoT plant care system

Weekly project · Deep Dive IoT · Nov 2023

One of several weekly builds during the Deep Dive IoT bootcamp — sketch, breadboard, firmware, 3D-print enclosure, ship. Smart Plant is the one I keep proudest of: a plant care station that reads the room and soil, shows it live on a web dashboard, and waters the plant when it needs it.

Rapid prototyping cycle: Fritzing diagram → breadboard wiring → firmware → CAD enclosure → 3D-printed on a Bambu Lab printer (planter embossed "PARR") — all in a single bootcamp week.
Sensors: capacitive soil moisture, temperature, humidity, air quality, dust, barometric pressure.
Actuator: 12V peristaltic pump driven by relay; waters automatically when soil moisture drops below threshold.
Hardware: Particle Photon 2, OLED status display, custom 3D-printed planter and matching electronics enclosure.
Dashboard: Adafruit IO web dashboard with live gauges and a manual "Water Plant" override button — usable from any browser.
Firmware: C++ on the Photon 2; published sensor telemetry over Wi-Fi; subscribed to dashboard commands for the manual override.

Hackster Full build log

Finished Smart Plant — 3D-printed PARR planter beside the black electronics enclosure

Finished unit

Tap for sound Finished unit · B-roll

Tap for sound Finished unit · B-roll II

Breadboard prototype

Tap for sound 3D printing the housing

Tap for sound Pump test

Tap for sound Dashboard live

Smart Bar — automated cocktail dispenser

Capstone · Deep Dive IoT · Dec 2023

An at-home alternative to clunky commercial bar machines. End-to-end build: enclosure, electronics, firmware, UX.

Built on a Particle Photon 2 with an OLED display, rotary encoder, four 12V pumps, a load cell, and a stepper-driven Archimedes screw. Pick a cocktail on the encoder — Margarita, Tequila Sunrise, your call — and the load cell tares the glass, then the pumps dispense each ingredient by weight for accuracy. A condiment slot drops in your olive or lime to finish the drink. Custom laser-cut chassis. Color-coded LED feedback through the encoder (purple ready, blue dispensing, green done).

Hackster Full build log

Research Experience

Solar Physics Researcher — First Author · National Solar Observatory / CU Boulder

May – Aug 2020 · Remote

Funded by NASA contract NAS5-97045 (SORCE), NSF, NSO, and AURA. Mentor: Serena Criscuoli, NSO.

Led sole-first-author research investigating temporal variability of the Hα 656.3nm spectral line in sun-as-a-star observations using the Integrated Sunlight Spectrometer (ISS).
Analyzed disk-integrated Hα core-to-wing ratio data from SOLIS instruments (NISP/NSO/AURA/NSF) over the 27-day solar rotational timescale, alongside faculae, sunspot, and filament datasets.
Found that sunspot area is the dominant modulator of Hα line shape; faculae and filaments showed negligible effect — contributing new understanding of chromospheric variability in solar-like stars relevant to exoplanet habitability research.
Presented findings as sole first author at a poster session; research published under NASA/NSF/AURA sponsorship.

Boulder Solar Alliance Research Experience for Undergraduates 2020 Virtual Cohort group photo, composited from individual portraits taken at each student's home during the COVID-19 pandemic — **Boulder Solar Alliance · 2020 Virtual Cohort.** The summer the program went fully remote — peak COVID, none of us ever in the same room. Each REU took a photo at home and the team photoshopped us together against the Flatirons. The cohort spanned southeast New Mexico, the Midwest, and as far as Ireland and Dubai — a science community that worked across continents and bedrooms instead of one Boulder lab.

Final internship talk — sun-as-a-star Hα variability, the 27-day rotational signal, and what sunspots vs. faculae vs. filaments contribute to chromospheric line shape. Presented remotely to the NSO / CU Boulder / SORCE team at the close of the 2020 summer program.

Glass Physics Researcher & Team Leader · Coe College — Dr. Steve Feller Lab

May – Aug 2023 · Cedar Rapids, IA

NSF-funded REU (Grant #1950330) & RUI (Grant #2203142). Multi-institution: Coe College, Georgia Tech, NM Tech, Seton Hall.

Led a team across four complex NSF-funded projects investigating glass composition, atomic structure, and dielectric properties.
Synthesized sodium borate and sodium silicate glasses at 1100°C–1300°C; performed stoichiometric weighing, controlled heating, roller quenching, and annealing.
Operated EasyXAFS 300+ for XANES/EXAFS, Raman spectrometers, DSC (STA449), and high-temperature electric furnaces.
Applied Hanning window and Fourier transform processing to convert energy-based XAS plots to wavenumber-based analysis; performed XRD interpretation.
Investigated glass as a dielectric component in Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) plasma generation — directly relevant to high-voltage and photonic applications.
Co-authored two published conference posters; presented at the Iowa Glass Conference; implemented new lab procedures improving stoichiometric accuracy across departments.

Tap for sound Mixing powders into a crucible

Glass sample pre-furnace

At the electric furnace · PPE

Glass sample in platinum crucible

Tap for sound Pouring liquid glass into graphite mold

Glass sample in graphite mold

Tap for sound Pouring liquid glass into roller quencher

Roller quencher

Glass sample after roller quenching

Bad glass sample

Perfected dielectric barrier

Good dielectric barrier sample

DSC · STA 449 Jupiter

Tap for sound DSC · STA 449 Jupiter · B-roll

Raman · LabRAM HR

Raman · Jasco NRS-3100

Tap for sound Raman calibration · Jasco NRS-3100

Tap for sound Raman · Jasco NRS-3100 · B-roll

At my poster · presentation day

With my lab techs at our other poster

Lab tech group · conference

Publications & Posters

Tap any paper to read the abstract and view the poster.

First Author

Variability of H-alpha Line Observed at High Spectral Resolution in the Solar Atmosphere

Rudy Parra

National Solar Observatory / University of Colorado Boulder · 2020 · Instruments: ISS, SOLIS · Funding: NASA NAS5-97045 (SORCE), NSF, NSO, AURA

Co-Author

Probing the Local Atomic Structure of Lead Borate Glasses with X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy

Z. Cazares, R. Parra, R. Hao, K. Ameku, I. Slagle, Y. Wei, S. Feller, F. Alamgir

Coe College · Georgia Tech · NM Tech · Iowa Glass Conference 2023 · Funding: NSF REU #1950330 & RUI #2203142

Co-Author

Using Sodium Borate Glass for a Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD)

R.G. Parra, Z.E. Cazares, R. Hao, J.L. López, S.A. Feller

Coe College · Seton Hall · CNM · NM Tech · Iowa Glass Conference 2023 · Funding: NSF REU #1950330 & RUI #2203142

Technical Skills

Lab Instrumentation

OscilloscopesDMMsPower supplies Function generatorsSpectrum analyzersDAQ systems EasyXAFS 300+Raman spectrometersDSC (STA449) High-temp furnaces (1100–1300°C)Integrated Sunlight Spectrometer

Electrical Assembly

PCB rework (SMT/through-hole)Wiring harnessesCrimping Cable routingStrain-reliefESD handling MOSFETsSSRsBMS systems

Embedded & Firmware

C++Arduino IDEESP32 Particle PhotonBLE / Wi-FiPID loops Relay & pump control

Automation & Scripting

PythonMATLABLinux Data loggingAnomaly detectionTelemetry analysis AI/ML implementation

Spectroscopy & Optics

XAS (XANES/EXAFS)RamanDSC XRDHα 656.3nm analysisSOLIS / ISS data Fourier transform & Hanning window

Safety, Fabrication & Other

OSHA / LOTOArgon / N₂ / Li handlingGlovebox (VAC) High-voltage awareness3D printingLaser cutting CNC machiningPCB designSlurry casting AutoCADGit / GitHubCisco routing & switching

Education & Certifications

A.A.S. — Computer Information Systems, Network Administration

Dec 2023 · 3.5 GPA

Central New Mexico Community College

Coursework: IT Essentials, IoT, Linux, Python, C++, AutoCAD, Semiconductor Apprentice, Network Security, Calculus I.

Deep Dive IoT Bootcamp

Oct – Dec 2023

CNM Ingenuity STEMulus Center

400+ hours: smart device coding (C++), electronic circuits, soldering, clean room operations, lab and factory automation.

Capstone: Smart Bar ↗

Cisco Certifications

CCNAv7 Introduction to Networks (Apr 2022) · CCNA Switching, Routing & Wireless Essentials (Aug 2022)

Leadership & Community

Board Member · New Mexico Tech Talks

May 2025 – Present · Albuquerque, NM

Strategic planning, partnerships, and community engagement for New Mexico's premier tech organization. Help organize NMTT's flagship initiatives — NM Tech Week (statewide programming, Oct 26–30, 2026), TechFest (two days of industry tracks), and Desert Dev Lab, our annual hackathon.

See the Desert Dev Lab 2026 impact

Desert Dev Lab 2026 · April 18–19 · WESST Enterprise Center

70 hackers across two days — up from 32 in 2025 (100 RSVPs).
~200 demo-day attendees — up from 30 last year.
20 mentors and 10 volunteers supporting teams (12 mentors in 2025).
Operating budget grew ~2.7× year-over-year, exceeding the fundraising goal by ~95%.
1 internship hire made on-site by a judge for a 2nd-place winner.
2 teams continued building post-event — Team Koko (now collaborating with the NM Economic Development Department's Food & Agriculture office) and BAEs 2 (pursuing post-hackathon mentorship for a D2G product).
Team OHM EI's project continued development under a Stanford summer program.
Sponsor & judge partnerships: WESST, Mayor Tim Keller, Talin Market, Rolling Still Distillery, High and Dry Brewing, Ardham, Trilyon, Data With Style.
Press: KOB News 4 · KRQE News 13 · RealmIQ · ABQ OneMedia · KKOB 96.3 The Weekend with Terry Travis.

“Desert Dev Lab Hackathon brought out the best NM has to offer. From up-and-coming students in the southern part of our state to established professionals right here in ABQ, this hackathon showed that the solutions to ongoing issues in our local food and agriculture sectors are right here in our own community… The ideas that emerged this weekend will surely become real working solutions because of this.” — Carly Heidenfeld · Talin Market (sponsor & judge)