Galland, ChristopheSangouard, NicolasPiro, NicolasGisin, NicolasKippenberg, Tobias J.2014-08-292014-08-292014-08-29201410.1103/PhysRevLett.112.143602https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/106584WOS:000339491100008We show how to use the radiation pressure optomechanical coupling between a mechanical oscillator and an optical cavity field to generate in a heralded way a single quantum of mechanical motion (a Fock state). Starting with the oscillator close to its ground state, a laser pumping the upper motional sideband produces correlated photon-phonon pairs via optomechanical parametric down-conversion. Subsequent detection of a single scattered Stokes photon projects the macroscopic oscillator into a single-phonon Fock state. The nonclassical nature of this mechanical state can be demonstrated by applying a readout laser on the lower sideband to map the phononic state to a photonic mode and performing an autocorrelation measurement. Our approach proves the relevance of cavity optomechanics as an enabling quantum technology.text::journal::journal article::research article