An Effective Analysis Method for Millimeter-wave Broadband Mixers

To realize the broadband characteristic of GaAs Schottky-diode-based mixers, an effective analysis method based on the proposed simplified formulas combined with full-wave simulation is given in this letter. The complex nonlinear analysis is simplified, and the dimension of key circuit has been estimated based on simplified formulas. A 3-D electromagnetic simulation software has been used for accurate circuit dimension from the perspective of signal transmission notches. This optimization method simplifies the calculation process and saves the design time. To verify the above-mentioned technique, an E-band broadband fundamental mixer and a W-band broadband sub-harmonic mixer are fabricated and measured. The mixers have broadband characteristics and the measured results are in good agreement with the simulation results. The proposed method can be used to intuitively and quickly remove intermediate frequency (IF) output power nulls in broadband mixers’ working frequency band.