Microwave Induced Quantum Transitions in a SQUID Ring

In this paper we consider the interaction of a quantum-mechanical superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) with a classical monochromatic electromagnetic (EM) field. We solve the time-dependent Schrödinger equation for the SQUID ring in this EM field. We demonstrate that non-perturbative transitions between the low-lying states of the ring, due to coherent multiphoton absorption processes, dominate, even when the single-photon energy is small compared with the energy separation between these states. We present experimental data on small-capacitance SQUID rings, interacting with microwave fields, which point to the existence of such non-perturbative transitions.