Harmonic boosting for high performance mixers

We propose a novel harmonic boosting technique for development of high performance subharmonic mixers. This technique alleviates major problems associated with the use of 4/sup th/ and higher order subharmonic mixers. By utilizing the odd-order harmonics of the main subharmonic LO, we demonstrate significant performance improvements while reducing the LO power. Measurements confirm a 6 dB savings in LO power level, up to 10 dB improvement in output P1dB and up to 6 dB improvement in conversion loss. Measurements also confirm that harmonic boosting does not degrade in-band LO leakage, IIP2 and dc offset levels, thus favoring its application in very-low-IF and direct conversion transceivers.