A scheme for the simultaneous measurement of atomic position and momentum

Abstract

We propose an optical scheme for the simultaneous measurement of the position and momentum of a single atom. The scheme involves the coupling of the atom of two light fields with different spatial and polarization characteristics. The proposed technique is closely related to the Arthurs-Kelly measurement scheme; the principal difference is that in the present case the values of the position and momentum are inferred from phase shifts in electromagnetic fields rather than from shifts in the position of a pointer.