receiving a radio frequency signal at an input of a low noise amplifier during a guard period when a carrier corresponding to a signal of interest is not present;

measuring wideband signal strength indication (RSSI_A) at an output of a mixer, the mixer coupled to receive an output of the low noise amplifier;

determining if mixer non-linearity is present based upon the wideband signal strength indication;

reducing gain of the low noise amplifier if mixer non-linearity is present, until the mixer is no longer driven into non-linearity;

determining if wideband signal strength indication exceeds a predetermined threshold that causes the mixer to operate in an upper range of mixer operation;

measuring narrowband signal strength indication (RSSI_B) after band pass filtering the output of the mixer, if wideband signal strength indication exceeds the predefined threshold;

determining if intermodulation interference is present using the narrowband signal strength indication;

optimizing a signal-to-interference ratio of the mixer by setting the gain of the low noise amplifier to have the mixer operate within its linear region of operation, if intermodulation interference is detected; and

setting the gain of the low noise amplifier so that narrowband signal strength indication exceeds a predetermined minimum, in which a combination of wideband signal strength indication and narrowband signal strength indication based gain adjustments of the low noise amplifier is employed to compensate for intermodulation interference.