Joint Source and Relay Optimization for Parallel MIMO Relay Networks

In this article, we study the optimal structure of the source precoding matrix and the relay amplifying matrices for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) relay communication systems with parallel relay nodes. Two types of receivers are considered at the destination node: (1) The linear minimal mean-squared error (MMSE) receiver; (2) The nonlinear decision feedback equalizer based on the minimal MSE criterion. We show that for both receiver schemes, the optimal source precoding matrix and the optimal relay amplifying matrices have a beamforming structure. Using such optimal structure, joint source and relay power loading algorithms are developed to minimize the MSE of the signal waveform estimation at the destination. Compared with existing algorithms for parallel MIMO relay networks, the proposed joint source and relay beamforming algorithms have significant improvement in the system bit-error-rate performance

Rising rural body-mass index is the main driver of the global obesity epidemic in adults

Body-mass index (BMI) has increased steadily in most countries in parallel with a rise in the proportion of the population who live in cities 1,2 . This has led to a widely reported view that urbanization is one of the most important drivers of the global rise in obesity 3�6 . Here we use 2,009 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in more than 112 million adults, to report national, regional and global trends in mean BMI segregated by place of residence (a rural or urban area) from 1985 to 2017. We show that, contrary to the dominant paradigm, more than 55 of the global rise in mean BMI from 1985 to 2017�and more than 80 in some low- and middle-income regions�was due to increases in BMI in rural areas. This large contribution stems from the fact that, with the exception of women in sub-Saharan Africa, BMI is increasing at the same rate or faster in rural areas than in cities in low- and middle-income regions. These trends have in turn resulted in a closing�and in some countries reversal�of the gap in BMI between urban and rural areas in low- and middle-income countries, especially for women. In high-income and industrialized countries, we noted a persistently higher rural BMI, especially for women. There is an urgent need for an integrated approach to rural nutrition that enhances financial and physical access to healthy foods, to avoid replacing the rural undernutrition disadvantage in poor countries with a more general malnutrition disadvantage that entails excessive consumption of low-quality calories. © 2019, The Author(s)

Tractable flux-driven temperature, density, and rotation profile evolution with the quasilinear gyrokinetic transport model QuaLiKiz

Quasilinear turbulent transport models are a successful tool for prediction of core tokamak plasma profiles in many regimes. Their success hinges on the reproduction of local nonlinear gyrokinetic fluxes. We focus on significant progress in the quasilinear gyrokinetic transport model QuaLiKiz (Bourdelle et al 2016 Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 58 014036), which employs an approximated solution of the mode structures to significantly speed up computation time compared to full linear gyrokinetic solvers. Optimisation of the dispersion relation solution algorithm within integrated modelling applications leads to flux calculations faster than local nonlinear simulations. This allows tractable simulation of flux-driven dynamic profile evolution including all transport channels: ion and electron heat, main particles, impurities, and momentum. Furthermore, QuaLiKiz now includes the impact of rotation and temperature anisotropy induced poloidal asymmetry on heavy impurity transport, important for W-transport applications. Application within the JETTO integrated modelling code results in 1 s of JET plasma simulation within 10 h using 10 CPUs. Simultaneous predictions of core density, temperature, and toroidal rotation profiles for both JET hybrid and baseline experiments are presented, covering both ion and electron turbulence scales. The simulations are successfully compared to measured profiles, with agreement mostly in the 5%-25% range according to standard figures of merit. QuaLiKiz is now open source and available at www.qualikiz.com

Erosion and deposition in the JET divertor during the second ITER-like wall campaign

Erosion of plasma-facing materials and successive transport and redeposition of eroded material are crucial processes determining the lifetime of plasma-facing components and the trapped tritium inventory in redeposited material layers. Erosion and deposition in the JET divertor were studied during the second JET ITER-like wall campaign ILW-2 in 2013-2014 by using a poloidal row of specially prepared divertor marker tiles including the tungsten bulk tile 5. The marker tiles were analyzed using elastic backscattering with 3-4.5 MeV incident protons and nuclear reaction analysis using 0.8-4.5 MeV 3He ions before and after the campaign. The erosion/deposition pattern observed during ILW-2 is qualitatively comparable to the first campaign ILW-1 in 2011-2012: deposits consist mainly of beryllium with 5-20 at.% of carbon and oxygen and small amounts of Ni and W. The highest deposition with deposited layer thicknesses up to 30 μm per campaign is still observed on the upper and horizontal parts of the inner divertor. Outer divertor tiles 5, 6, 7 and 8 are net W erosion areas. The observed D inventory is roughly comparable to the inventory observed during ILW-1. The results obtained during ILW-2 therefore confirm the positive results observed in ILW-1 with respect to reduced material deposition and hydrogen isotopes retention in the divertor

Comparison of the efficiency of various substrates in growing vertically aligned carbon nanotube carpets

The intensity of 9Be + p nuclear fusion reactions was experimentally studied during second harmonic (2ω CH) ion-cyclotron resonance heating (ICRH) and further analyzed during fundamental hydrogen minority ICRH of JET-ILW hydrogen and deuterium plasmas. In relatively low-density plasmas with a high ICRH power, a population of fast H+ ions was created and measured by neutral particle analyzers. Primary and secondary nuclear reaction products, due to 9Be + p interaction, were observed with fast ion loss detectors, γ-ray spectrometers and neutron flux monitors and spectrometers. The possibility of using 9Be(p, d)2α and 9Be(p, α)6Li nuclear reactions to create a population of fast alpha particles and study their behaviour in non-active stage of ITER operation is discussed in the paper