A positron is a particle of \"antimatter\"; it has the same mass as an electron

Question

A positron is a particle of "antimatter"; it has the same mass as an electron (9e-31 kg), but its charge is positive instead of negative. At research facilities such as the Cornell Electron Positron Storage Ring at Cornell University in New York, high energy beams of positrons can be produced.

When a positron encounters an electron, the two particles annihilate each other, and produce two high energy photons (gamma rays), which travel away from each other.
e^- + e^+ -> gamma + gamma

Suppose that a positron traveling at a speed of 0.93c collides head on with an electron traveling at the same speed.

What is the sum of the energies of the two photons which are produced when the positron and the electron annihilate?
sum of photon energies = _________ J

Explanation / Answer

The total energy of the two photons is equal to the total energy of the electron and positron.

Calculating E= gamma*mc^2 for each particle and add them up.

gamma = 1/sqrt(1 - v2/c2)

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