2026-07-072026-07-07http://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/150401We show how to design different couplings between a single ion trapped in a harmonic potential and an environment. This will provide the basis for the experimental study of the process of decoherence in a quantum system. The coupling is due to the absorption of a laser photon and subsequent spontaneous emission. The variation of the laser frequencies and intensities allows one to ``engineer'' the coupling and select the master equation describing the motion of the ion.11 pages, 2 Figures (bmp and eps formats)Atomic PhysicsQuantum Physicstext