Exponential Synchronization of Nonlinear Oscillators Under Sampled-Data Coupling

This paper presents a novel approach towards synchronization analysis of nonlinear oscillatory systems, bidirectionally coupled via a networked communication channel. The system under consideration is a two-agent nonlinear system, under the constraint that information is transmitted between the two systems using a sampled-data communication strategy that could be periodic or aperiodic. The networked system dynamics is remodelled as a feedback-interconnection of a continuous-time system, and an operator that accounts for the communication constraints. By studying the properties of this feedback-interconnection in the framework of dissipativity theory, we provide a novel criterion that guarantees exponential synchronization. The provided criterion also aids in deciding the trade-off between a bound on the sampling intervals, the coupling gain, and the desired transient rate of synchronization. Finally, the theoretical results are illustrated using a two-agent Fitzhugh-Nagumo system.