The IET Control & Automation Committee are delighted to award the PhD Thesis Award for 2015 to Jonathan Mayo-Maldonado for his thesis titled "Switched Linear Differential Systems", submitted to the University of Southampton. This thesis considered the study of systems involving switching dynamics such as those found in power electronics and energy distribution networks. The thesis proposes a novel framework based on 'quadratic differential forms' and 'dissipativity theory' to study the stability and stabilisability properties of these systems.



The committee were particularly pleased with the variety of high quality submissions presented for the award this year. Jonathan's thesis was selected for the prize for its depth and breadth of theoretical contributions made, together with the practical application of new concepts in the modelling and analysis of real-life systems, such as power converters. The supporting references provided were of a high quality and of an international nature, providing further insights into the advances made by the thesis. The thesis scored well on the quality of publications generated thus far and the number of times these have been cited in other scholarly articles. The committee believed the concepts presented in the thesis will advance and stimulate further research in this emerging area of work, which was a key criteria in making the award decision.



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Huge thanks also the judging panel for their hard work in selecting a winner from all the worthy entries!