POTENTIAL FIELD-BASED DECENTRALIZED CONTROL METHODS FOR NETWORK CONNECTIVITY MAINTENANCE By

unwavering support and constant encouragement 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Warren E. Dixon, for his guidance, patience and support in the completion of my Ph.D. As an advisor, he guided me to start my graduate career on the right foot, encouraged me to explore my own ideas, and helped me recover when my steps faltered. His experience helped me grow fast in the four years of Ph.D study. I appreciate all his contributions of time, ideas and enthusiasm to make my Ph.D experience productive and stimulating. In addition to help me mature in the research, he also provided instrumental advices, like an elder brother or a close friend, on my future career plan, job hunting, and other aspects of life. I feel so fortunate to have had Dr. Dixon as my advisor, and I hope that one day I would become as good as an advisor to my students as he has been to me. I would like to extend my gratitude to my committee member, John Shea. I am deeply grateful to him for the carefully reading and insightful comments on countles