Experimental creation and analysis of displaced number states
Frank Ziesel, Thomas Ruster, Andreas Walther, Henning Kaufmann, Samuel T. Dawkins, Kilian Singer, Ferdinand Schmidt‐Kaler, Ulrich Poschinger · Journal of Physics B Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics · 2013
Abstract. We create displaced number states, which are non-classical generalizations of coherent states, of a vibrational mode of a single trapped ion. The creation of these states is accomplished by a combination of optical and electrical manipulation of the ion. A number state is first prepared by laser-driven climbing of the Jaynes-Cummings ladder, followed by displacement created by a sudden shift of the electrostatic trapping potential. Number states n =0,1 and 2 are prepared, and displacement amplitudes of up to α ≈ 2.8 are reached. The states are analyzed tomographically, and we find a good agreement with the theoretically expected results for displaced number states. Quantum features elucidating the concept of interference in phase space are clearly demonstrated experimentally.