About “Fen Wu”

Dr. Wu’s long-term goal is to play an important role in the development of robust and nonlinear control theory. A major roadblock in the development of robust and nonlinear control theory is solvability (computation) and so his work focuses largely on solvability.

Dr. Wu teaches Nonlinear System Analysis and Control (MAE 522). This is a first-year graduate-level course that introduces students to the interesting nonlinear behavior and the corresponding control strategies, like Liapunov stability theory, feedback linearization, and sliding mode control. He also teaches Robust Control with Convex methods (MAE 721). This is an advanced course that goes beyond linear theory to provide modern tools that enhance robustness when the system is not completely known.

At the undergraduate level, Dr. Wu teaches Dynamics of Machines (MAE 315) and Principles of Automatic Control (MAE 435). In both of these courses, Dr. Wu’s major emphasis to the students is that we are dealing with systems and, as such, that they obey systematic methods.

Dr. Wu’s students are theoretically oriented, self-motivated, and work independently. He tends to give them a lot of freedom in their research direction. His students enjoy the subject, among the different reasons, because of its unique blend of mathematics and engineering.