Millimeter wave generation based on optical frequency multiplication in radio over fiber systems

In this paper an overview of the generation schemes for millimeter wave signals has been reported and a comparative analysis is made to decide their suitability to modern radio over fiber systems. Photonic millimeter-wave (mm-wave) generation using optical frequency multiplication (OFM) is considered as a cost-effective solution in modern radio over fiber (RoF) systems. This paper provides an insight to the advancement of this field in recent times by reviewing the pros and cons of a few of the latest OFM architectures. Simulation of an RoF link based on an optical frequency multiplication technique is performed and results show that the link exhibits satisfactory performance for a range upto 30 km single mode fiber.