In this paper, a novel excitation control is designed for improvement of transient stability of power systems. The control algorithm is based on the adaptive backstepping method in a recursive way without linearizing the system model. Lyapunov function method is applied in designing the controller to ensure the convergence of the power angle, relative speed of the generator and the active electrical power delivered by the generator when a large fault occurs. Compared with the existing nonlinear decentralized control approaches, the proposed controller has no requirement for the bounds of interconnections in the power system. And the new approach does not need the existence of solution of a designed algebraic Riccati equation. Furthermore, the transient stability performance of power systems can also be improved by the designed control approach. The efficacy of the designed controller has been demonstrated in a multimachine power system. Simulation results show transient stability enhancement of a power system in the face of a large sudden fault. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.