What occurs when the input signal levels to a mixer are too high?

Mixers are designed to operate optimally within a specific dynamic range of input signal levels. When an incoming RF signal is excessively strong, it drives the mixer's non-linear components beyond their intended operating range into saturation or clipping. This severe overdrive condition causes the mixer to produce complex, higher-order intermodulation products. These are known as spurious mixer products, which can manifest as phantom signals, 'birdies,' or elevated noise across the receiver's passband, degrading overall receiver performance. Distractors suggesting that the mixer will safely 'limit' the signal or initiate 'blanking' are incorrect. Mixers do not have built-in safety mechanisms to gracefully handle being overdriven; they simply generate unwanted spurious signals.