In 1988, two o
f Abdullah Atalar’s students, Satılmış Topçu and Enis Ungan, designed the first integrated circuit of Turkey. A microscope image of the chip is shown in the picture. Operating from a +5V supply, it is a microprocessor compatible 128-bit digital correlator, specifications of which were given by ASELSAN. It was possible to combine two such correlators to make a 256-bit digital correlator. The design was done using MAGIC, a public-domain IC design package, operating on SUN workstations. At those days, FPGA’s were not available. A full-custom integrated circuit was the only viable alternative for a low-power solution. The fabricated design worked in the first try flawlessly.