Generation of superpositions of coherent states of the motion of a trapped ion

We propose a method for preparing superpositions of coherent states of the motion of an ion in an anisotropic two-dimensional trap, in which the ion is tightly bound in the y direction. In the scheme the ion is excited by two resonant laser beams with equal amplitude, propagating along the x and y directions, respectively. In the Dicke-Lamb limit, an initial coherent state of the ion motion can be converted into a superposition of several coherent states on a circle through the laser-ion interactions and state-selective measurements on the ion. Received: 30 May 1997 / Revised: 29 July 1997 / Accepted: 22 October 1997