A Quick Guide to Mixer Topologies

Real-world mixers come in many flavors. Mini-Circuits offers hundreds of unique mixer models representing six different circuit topologies. The good news is that this variety gives designers options for just about every application requirement. The problem, albeit a high-class problem, is that understanding the differences between mixer designs can complicate the component selection process.
This article will provide a broad overview of the different mixer topologies, including both balanced and unbalanced architectures. It should be noted that, in theory, any nonlinear device can be used to make a mixer, but Schottky diodes and Field Effect Transistors (FETs) are the most common. Mini-Circuits designs both diode- and FET-based mixers, but the topologies here will be presented using diode mixers for simplicity. However, the same principles can be applied to other technologies as well.