As a professor in the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Abdullah Atalar got his BSc from METU. He received his MSc and PhD from Stanford University. In 1980, he started teaching at METU. For some time, he also worked for companies like HP, Leica and ASELSAN. In 1986, he transferred to the newly established Bilkent University, and there founded the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering. Until 1994, he was the chair of the department. In 1996, he was appointed Vice Rector for Academic Affairs. Prof. Atalar, who became a member of the board of directors of Bilkent Holding in 2001, was promoted to vice chairman and executive director of this company in 2004. He served as the chairman of the board of directors of TÜBİTAK Uzay (2004–2007) and TÜBİTAK Ulakbim (2004–2012). Atalar became a fellow of IEEE in 2007. After Ali Doğramacı left his position at Bilkent University in March, 2010, Prof. Atalar was nominated by the university as a new rector. His term as rector ended on May, 2022. Currently, he is teaching Analog Electronics to second-year students. He is married and the father of three children. He speaks English and German.
Why did you become a professor?
Ever since I was in middle school, I’ve liked teaching. When I was in sixth grade, our math teacher asked me to mentor another student. At that time, I liked being a teacher. I was curious about things, and this is the main reason why I became a faculty member since doing research is a big part of the job. Being a faculty member is nice because you get to choose what are you going to work on, unlike a job in industry. You basically don’t have a boss. That’s why it is difficult to be a rector of a university. Faculty members don’t like bosses.
Why/how did you choose Bilkent? What do you like the most about being at Bilkent?
When I finished my PhD studies in the US, I worked for two years in an industrial environment that was also a research lab. Later, I turned back to Turkey to become a faculty member in METU. I was a faculty member there for about six years between 1980–1986. In 1986, Bilkent University was new. The university’s founder, İhsan Doğramacı, invited me to Bilkent, which was still under construction. He offered me a faculty position to become the chairperson of the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering. I was impressed by his vision. That’s why I chose Bilkent. I was one of the first faculty members of the university. Ever since, I’ve been at Bilkent. Because I worked in the foundation of the university, it has an important place in my heart.
What projects are you working on currently?
I have eight graduate, two PhD, six undergraduate and six master’s students. They are each working on different electronics projects. Basically, I work on projects related to semi-conductor electronics. We work on improving the performance of circuits, especially in terms of efficiency. Electrical circuits are everywhere and they are contributing to global warming. If we can make them more efficient, that would help the fight against global warming.
I am also working on some sensors that are used in ultrasonics. Ultrasonics are used in imaging the human body. I am interested in how to make sensors with silicon technology and whether we can use the silicon technology that normally is used to fabricate electronic devices. But in general, I concentrate on improving efficiency.
What’s your best work?
I have authored some 100 papers that are published in scientific journals. Some of these papers have received a lot of citations, some of them did not. The paper that I liked the most didn’t receive a lot of citations. Some of my papers can be difficult to understand or are not appreciated by the scientific community.
What excites you about your work? What’s the coolest thing about your work?
The coolest thing about being a faculty member is being with the younger generation. I think that it keeps me young too, at least mentally. I have been a teacher to many students, sometimes they come to visit after many years and I see them doing good stuff. It is a nice feeling because they remember me, they appreciate me. Making an impression in other people’s lives is important. I believe that elementary school teachers are more important in that sense.
Could you share a turning point or defining moment in your career?
Starting at Bilkent was a turning point. Our founder invited me to his office, which was in the library building. At the time, the road that enters Bilkent was a narrow, one-lane road. İhsan Doğramacı said that he was going to found a research university and that he wanted it to be one of the top research universities not only in Turkey but in the world.
What has been the most exciting moment of your career so far?
Having received TÜBİTAK’s Science prize.
What’s the most common misconception and one piece of information from your field that you think everyone should know?
There is a misconception that base stations are dangerous for your health. They are not; having a base station nearby is actually good for you because your cellular phone needs to transmit less power. Cell phones themselves transmit power, and they are more dangerous than base stations. If you are far away from a base station, your cell phone has to transmit much more power and that can harm you.
When and where do you do your best thinking?
While I am taking a shower in the morning.
What distracts you?
I’ve worked in administration for many years in this university except for the last one and a half years. Being an administrator is not an easy task, especially in the top-level position. Being a rector was very difficult. Things that were easy to solve had already been solved before they came to me. But the most difficult problems, mostly the ones that have negative answers, come to the rector, and I was the person who said “no.” So, I was always the bad guy. People don’t like to get a “no” for an answer. Being an administrator distracted me from my other duties, such as research and teaching. I tried to do both when I was the rector. I was one of the few rectors who also taught. I was a rector for 12 years and I also taught for 12 years. It was half the course load that one faculty member should teach, but I did teach. I felt that knowing what was going on with the students was important. I was in constant contact with my students while I was a rector. Most of my life at Bilkent was spent being an administrator either as a rector or as a chairperson, and I was distracted by administrative tasks.
What are you most curious about?
What will global warming do to humanity? I am worried about that. We are going in a direction that will be unsustainable.
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
I like gardening. We don’t have a gardener and we have a relatively large garden. I take care of it. We have a lot of fruit trees, and I grow tomatoes. We use what I am growing.
If you weren’t a professor, what career would you choose?
I think I would be a researcher in a research institution.
What’s the secret to leading a happy life?
Doing what you like the most.
If you could go back to your undergraduate/graduate student years, what advice would you give to your younger-self?
I was lucky when I was a graduate student. I had good teachers. I had a very respectable advisor who was also a very good person. I recommend that when you look for graduate study, especially if you seek a PhD, you need a good advisor. One should choose their advisor very well. Talking to past students can be helpful.
