A molding approach to fabricating meniscus cylindrical glass lenses for beam shaping

The meniscus cylindrical glass lens is a key optical component for advanced beam shaping, yet its complex geometry poses substantial fabrication challenges. In this work, a molding approach is proposed for the efficient and flexible fabrication of meniscus cylindrical glass lenses. By integrating precision glass molding (PGM) and localized hot bending, this method enables precise control over the lens profile, thickness, height, and radius of curvature, thus allowing for the flexible production of diverse geometries from a single mold. The results indicated that through precise control of the process parameters, the radius of curvature of the hot-bended convex surface was precisely controlled over a range from 2.5 to 28 mm, with a sag height varying from 0.15 to 1.28 mm. The residual stress birefringence in the functional arc region of the molded meniscus cylindrical lens was below 2 nm/cm, representing a significant reduction compared to conventional compression molding. Optical evaluation test confirmed that molded meniscus cylindrical glass lenses exhibit good beam shaping performance. The proposed manufacturing method provides a facile and flexible solution for fabricating meniscus cylindrical glass lenses for beam shaping.