  We present a Hamiltonian that can be used for amplifying the signal from a
quantum state, enabling the measurement of a macroscopic observable to
determine the state of a single spin. We prove a general mapping between this
Hamiltonian and an exchange Hamiltonian for arbitrary coupling strengths and
local magnetic fields. This facilitates the use of existing schemes for perfect
state transfer to give perfect amplification. We further prove a link between
the evolution of this fixed Hamiltonian and classical Cellular Automata,
thereby unifying previous approaches to this amplification task.
  Finally, we show how to use the new Hamiltonian for perfect state transfer in
the, to date, unique scenario where total spin is not conserved during the
evolution, and demonstrate that this yields a significantly different response
in the presence of decoherence.
