Energy into matter conversion possible?

[Moviemann345]

With Einstein's theory, E=MC^2, we can turn matter into energy. But is there a way to take pure energy and some how turn it into matter. It seems crazy, but why not? matter into energy is just as strange... is there a method to do this?

 

[George Jones]

With Einstein's theory, E=MC^2, we can turn matter into energy. But is there a way to take pure energy and some how turn it into matter. It seems crazy, but why not? matter into energy is just as strange... is there a method to do this?

It is possible for two (massless) photons to collide and "disappear", "creating" massive particles (e.g., an electron and a positron) in the process.

 

[Mentz114]

In the early stage of the big-bang energy turned into matter, but that was under mind-boggling extremes of temperature. Apart from pair-production which George has mentioned above, it's not something that can be routinely done. Conservation of Fermion number means that an anti-particle must be created to balance the equation.

 

[IRobot]

That's what we do in colliders, like the LHC; the kinetic energy of the particles transforms into a bunch of new particles.

 

[Dale]

For photons over about 1.1 MeV this is actually one of the primary interactions with matter.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pair_production

 

[Moviemann345]

Wow, so wait are electrons concentrated high energy photons?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-photon_physics

Also did electrons orginate from intense heat & rare photons collisions from the big bang era?

 

[jtbell]

Wow, so wait are electrons concentrated high energy photons?

No, they are distinct particles. Electrons are not "made of" photons, or vice versa.