January 30, 2026, Webb Hall 1100

The transition from centralized to distributed power generation poses significant challenges for the energy sector, driven by economic, environmental, and operational demands. DC microgrids, i.e., electrical networks comprising distributed generation units, loads, and storage systems, offer a promising solution. The primary control objective in DC microgrids is to regulate load voltages to prescribed values while ensuring overall system stability. This task is particularly challenging in DC microgrids with boost converters due to system bilinearity. To address this issue, we introduce a new passivity concept, named Krasovskii passivity. Based on this concept, we design stabilizing controllers that enable distributed voltage regulation in networks of boost converters. Experimental results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed controllers, demonstrating strong robustness against load variations.

Yu Kawano has since 2019 been an Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Advanced Science and Engineering at Hiroshima University. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Engineering from Osaka University, Japan, in 2011 and 2013, respectively. He was a Postdoctoral Researcher at Kyoto University, Japan, from 2013 to 2016, and at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands, from 2016 to 2019. He has also held visiting research positions at Tallinn University of Technology, Estonia, the University of Pavia, Italy, the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India. His research interests include nonlinear systems, complex networks, model reduction, and privacy in control systems.