An investigation of optimal feedback controllers performance and robustness is carried out for vortex shedding behind a 2D cylinder at low Reynolds numbers. To facilitate controller design, we present an efficient modelling approach in which we utilise the resolvent operator to recast the linearised Navier-Stokes equations into an input-output form from which frequency responses can be computed. The difficulty of applying modern control design techniques to complex, high-dimensional flow systems is thus overcome by using low-order models identified from these frequency responses. The low-order models are used to design optimal control laws using $mathcal{H}_{infty}$ loop shaping. Two distinct control arrangements are considered, both of which employ a single-input and a single-output. In the first control arrangement, a velocity sensor located in the wake drives a pair of body forces near the cylinder. Complete suppression of shedding is observed up to a Reynolds number of $Re=110$. Due to the convective nature of vortex shedding and the corresponding time delays, we observe a fundamental trade-off: the sensor should be close enough to the cylinder to avoid any excessive time lag, but it should be kept sufficiently far from the cylinder to measure any unstable modes developing downstream. It is found that these two conflicting requirements become more difficult to satisfy for larger Reynolds numbers. In the second control arrangement, we consider a practical setup with a body-mounted force sensor and an actuator that oscillates the cylinder according to the lift measurement. It is shown that the system is stabilised only up to $Re=100$, and we demonstrate why the performance of the resulting feedback controllers deteriorates much more rapidly with increasing Reynolds number. The challenges of designing robust controllers for each control setup are also analysed and discussed.
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