Stability of linear neutral time-delay systems: exact conditions via matrix pencil solutions

In this paper, we study the stability properties of linear neutral delay systems. We consider systems described by both neutral differential-difference and state-space equations, and we seek to determine the delay margin of such systems, that is, the largest range of delay values for which a neutral delay system may preserve its stability. In both cases, we show that the delay margin can be found by computing the eigenvalues and generalized eigenvalues of certain constant matrices, which can be executed efficiently and with high precision. The results extend previously known work on retarded systems, and demonstrate that similar stability tests exist for neutral systems; in particular, the tests require essentially the same amount of computation required for retarded systems.