Circuits with a mem-element: invariant manifolds control via pulse programmed sources

The paper considers the problem of controlling multistability in a general class of circuits composed of a linear time-invariant two-terminal (one port) element, containing linear R, L, C components and ideal operational amplifiers, coupled with one of the mem-elements (memory elements) introduced by Prof. L.O. Chua, i.e., memristors, memcapacitors, and meminductors. First, explicit expressions of the invariant manifolds of the circuit are directly given in terms of the state variables of the two-terminal element and the mem-element. Then, the problem of steering the circuit dynamics from an initial invariant manifold to a final one, and hence to potentially switch among different attractors of the circuit, is addressed by designing pulse shaped control inputs. The control inputs ensure that the transition between the initial and final manifolds is accomplished within a given finite time interval. Moreover, it is shown how the designed control inputs can be implemented by introducing independent voltage and current sources in the two-terminal element. Notably, it turns out that it is always possible to solve the considered control problem by using a unique independent source. Several examples are provided to illustrate how the proposed approach can be applied to different circuits with mem-elements and to highlight the influence of the features of the designed sources on the behavior of the controlled dynamics.