Vibrational amplification by stimulated emission of radiation

We propose the use of a single trapped and laser-cooled ion for vibrational amplification assisted by stimulated emission of radiation. This quantum-mechanical counterpart of the micromaser allows one to modify the fundamental vibronic coupling externally. In particular, a vibrational number state can be prepared in a coherent interaction regime, whereas incoherent interaction may yield a sub-Poissonian, binomial number distribution. © 1996 The American Physical Society.