Schott has developed a precision moulding process for producing strips and arrays of high refractive miniature lenses out of glass. Glass types like P-LaSF47 enable compact light source dimensions with high light throughputs for wavelengths ranging from 350 to 2,000nm.
Small lenses and optical components in particular are increasingly in demand when it comes to producing light sources and optics that have more compact designs. The lenses can have a very high and steep curvature and be placed very closely together, which makes them particularly suitable for light sources with several LEDs, for instance. For example, 19 aspherically formed lenses 5mm in diameter and 2.5mm in height can be combined on an array that is only 25mm in diameter. The process also allows for other supply forms such as diffractive optical elements and Fresnel lenses, as well as free combinations of several designs.