Understanding soliton wave propagation in nonlinear transmission lines for millimeter wave multiplication

In this paper, soliton propagation in nonlinear transmission lines (NLTLs) periodically loaded with symmetric voltage dependent capacitances is studied. From the lumped element equivalent circuit of the line we have analyzed the influence of nonlinear shunt reactances on soliton propagation characteristics. It is shown that by increasing the non linearity of the C-V characteristic, a faster separation of input signal into solitons is achieved. The fact that frequency multiplication in NLTLs is governed by soliton formation makes the results of this work relevant to understand the influence of nonlinear loading devices on multiplier performance. Since a heterostructure barrier varactor (HBV)-like voltage dependent capacitance has been considered for the nonlinear devices, this study can be of interest for the design of millimeter wave frequency multipliers loaded with HBVs.