In summary, positions for physics PhDs in academia or government labs are highly competitive and difficult to obtain. As a result, many physics PhDs end up working in various industries such as data science, aerospace, telecommunications, utilities, medical instrumentation, sales, journalism, finance, and technical writing. The American Physical Society (APS) has some documentation on this, but it lacks finer details. It is also worth considering whether companies that receive Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding should be considered as part of the industry that hires physics PhDs. Some companies that have hired physics PhDs include laser manufacturers, car engine and instrumentation design companies, software engineering firms, management consulting firms, and finance companies. However, the question of whether these individuals
Lasers. Damn near everyone in the engineering departments at Laser manufacturers has a PhD. Same for the more high tech users; microscopy, semiconductors, etc.