Using a Fresnel lens, they were able to snap a photograph of the dark spot left in the atom's wake as the laser passed over it.

ENGADGET: Researchers capture a single atom's shadow, has implications for quantum computers

Researchers at Griffith University have managed to snap the first image of a single atom's shadow and, while the dark spot may be physically small, the implications for the field of quantum computing are huge.

ENGADGET: Researchers capture a single atom's shadow, has implications for quantum computers

"If a dark matter particle comes in and hits the argon, the recoiling atom gets a kick of energy and it quickly tries to get rid of it, " says Dr Ghag.

BBC: Dark Matter: Experiment to shed light on dark particles