In a method of making pixelated scintillators, an amorphous scintillator material in a molten state is pressed into a plurality of cavities defined by a plurality of walls of a mesh array. The molten scintillator material in the plurality of cavities is cooled to form a pixelated scintillator array. An x-ray imager including a pixelated scintillator is also described.

A method for treating a mold includes grinding an outer metal surface of a mold body of the mold with a first material; lapping the outer metal surface after the grinding with a second material that is finer than the first material; and polishing the outer metal surface after the lapping to achieve an average surface roughness (R.sub.a) less than or equal to about 0.15 m and a waviness height (W.sub.a) less than or equal to about 100 nm. A mold for shaping glass-based material can include a mold body having an outer metal surface, wherein the outer metal surface has an average surface roughness (R.sub.a) less than or equal to about 0.15 m and a waviness height (W.sub.a) less than or equal to about 100 nm.