  We consider a unitary transfer of an arbitrary state of a two-level atomic
qubit in a cavity to the finite amplitude coherent state cavity field. Such
transfer can be used to either provide an effective readout measurement on the
atom by a subsequent measurement on the light field or as a method for
initializing a fixed atomic state - a so-called "attractor state", studied
previously for the case of an infinitely strong cavity field. We show that with
a suitable adjustment of the coherent amplitude and evolution time the qubit
transfers all its information to the field, attaining a selected state of high
purity irrespectively of the initial state.
