Credit: Ben Norton

Atoms are what make up our universe, and at their smallest, are only one tenth of a millionth of a millimetre across. Despite this miniscule size, we are now able to image individual atoms, thanks to the work of Ben Norton from the Centre for Quantum Dynamics at Griffith University in Queensland.

Norton has captured the highest resolution images ever of a single atom with the help of a special lens. By cooling the atoms down to absolute zero (-273.25 degrees Celsisus), he is able to reduce any movement. Norton then traps the atoms in an ultra-high vacuum that contains less air than outer space and holds them in place for a 'photo opp' using electric fields.

"We have built the ion trap from the ground up and had to put all of the optical components and vacuum components together. We started trapping atoms and we have been able to obtain these high resolution images," says Norton.

Commended for their outstanding work, Norton and his supervisors were awarded runner up in the Canon Cistra Extreme Imaging Competition for their high resolution images at the Sydney Observatory on 10 February 2012.

You could say that Norton was groomed for success from very early on, as his undergraduate degree in photonics and nanoscience led him to the field of laser atomic physics. He first started playing with this special lens as part of his Honours project at Griffith University, when some were brought in as a trial for quantum computers.

"The lab [at the Centre for Quantum Dynamics] uses lasers for different sorts of applications. They have different lasers that interested me at the time, and from there my interest in atoms sort of grew. When I worked out what these atoms could do I was amazed," says Norton.

Norton's basic research is in atomic physics, using lasers to interact with atoms. The team is now hoping to use the high resolution images of single atoms to understand how atoms behave, which in turn will give great insights into possible applications for quantum computing.