A meson converter, and method, for generating thermal energy from a meson flux includes a plurality of absorber layers, where each absorber layer includes a metal plate of a first type, and a plurality of heat transport layers where each heat transport layer includes a metal plate of a second type, where the plurality of absorber layers and the plurality of heat transport layers are arranged alternately in a stack, where each absorber layer is arranged in contact with at least one heat transport layer, where any two adjacent layers in the stack have dissimilar densities and where the thermal conductivity of the metal plate of the second type is higher than the thermal conductivity of the metal plate of the first type.