  The interaction of intense linearly polarized femtosecond laser pulses with
solids is known to generate azimuthal magnetic fields, while circularly
polarized light has been shown to create axial fields. We demonstrate through
experiments and particle-in-cell simulations that circularly polarized light
can generate both axial and azimuthal fields of comparable magnitude in a
plasma created in a solid. Angular distributions of the generated fast
electrons at target front and rear show significant differences between the
results for the two polarization states, with circular polarization enforcing
more axial confinement. The measurement of the spatial distribution of both
types of magnetic fields captures their turbulent evolution.
