  We fabricated an asymmetric nanoscale SQUID consisting of one nanobridge weak
link and one Dayem bridge weak link. The current phase relation of these
particular weak links is characterized by multivaluedness and linearity. While
the latter is responsible for a particular magnetic field dependence of the
critical current (so-called vorticity diamonds), the former enables the
possibility of different vorticity states (phase winding numbers) existing at
one magnetic field value. In experiments the observed critical current value is
stochastic in nature, does not necessarily coincide with the current associated
with the lowest energy state and critically depends on the measurement
conditions. In this work, we unravel the origin of the observed metastability
as a result of the phase dynamics happening during the freezing process and
while sweeping the current. Moreover, we employ special measurement protocols
to prepare the desired vorticity state and identify the (hidden) phase slip
dynamics ruling the detected state of these nanodevices. In order to gain
insights into the dynamics of the condensate and, more specifically the hidden
phase slips, we performed time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau simulations.
