Energy efficient photonic millimeter-wave generation using cascaded polarization modulators

A filter-less millimeter-wave generation scheme consisting of four polarization modulators in series, each followed by a polarizer is proposed to achieve optoelectronic frequency octupling. Theoretical analysis of the architecture is done by a transfer function method, validated by industry-standard software simulation. The circuit shows high potential in achieving desired performance with lower input RF power when compared to the another configuration. Effects of imbalances in the key circuit parameters are also investigated.