Phase space control in laser produced plasmas and the onset of kinetic instabilities

We show how intense lasers can produce plasmas with tailored electron distribution functions, and we demonstrate that, for realistic experimental conditions, electron scale kinetic instabilities in magnetized plasmas (e.g. electron firehose, electron maser) can be probed, from the onset to saturation. Our theoretical predictions are compared with one-to-one numerical simulations. We further conjecture that, with exotic laser polarizations (e.g. Poincaré beams), more complex scenarios/configurations e.g. strongly sheared distribution functions, can also be designed and explored in the laboratory.