Symmetric qubits from cavity states

Two-mode cavities can be prepared in quantum states which represent symmetric multiqubit states. However, the qubits are impossible to address individually and as such cannot be independently measured or otherwise manipulated. We propose two related schemes to coherently transfer the qubits that the cavity state represents onto individual atoms, so that the qubits can then be processed individually. In particular, our scheme can be combined with the quantum cloning scheme of Simon and co-workers [C. Simon et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 84, 2993 (2000)] to allow the optimal clones that their scheme produces to be spatially separated and individually utilized.