In this note we give a precise definition of the notion of a maximal superalgebra of certain types of supersymmetric supergravity backgrounds, including the Freund-Rubin backgrounds, and propose a geometric construction extending the well-known construction of its Killing superalgebra. We determine the structure of maximal Lie superalgebras and show that there is a finite number of isomorphism classes, all related via contractions from an orthosymplectic Lie superalgebra. We use the structure theory to show that maximally supersymmetric waves do not possess such a maximal superalgebra, but that the maximally supersymmetric Freund-Rubin backgrounds do. We perform the explicit geometric construction of the maximal superalgebra of AdS_4 x S^7 and find that is isomorphic to osp(1|32). We propose an algebraic construction of the maximal superalgebra of any background asymptotic to AdS_4 x S^7 and we test this proposal by computing the maximal superalgebra of the M2-brane in its two maximally supersymmetric limits, finding agreement.
We study the superconformal and super-BRS invariance of the supersymmetric Wess-Zumino-Witten model based on Lie superalgebra. The computation of the critical super-dimension of this model is done using the Fujikawa regularization. Finally, we recover the well-known result which fixes the relative coupling constant a2 = 1 in a rigorous way.
Dynkin's classification of maximal subalgebras of simple finite dimensional complex Lie algebras is generalized to Lie subsuperalgebras of the general linear Lie superalgebras.
We derive superalgebras in many types of supersymmetric M-brane backgrounds. The backgrounds examined here include the cases of the M-wave and the M-Kaluza-Klein monopole. On the basis of the obtained algebras, we deduce all the supersymmetric non-orthogonal intersections of the M-Kaluza-Klein monopole and the M-5-brane at angles. In addition, we present a 1/4 supersymmetric worldvolume 3-brane soliton on the M-5-brane in the M-5-brane background as an extended solution of the 3-brane solitons of the M-5-brane by Howe, Lambert and West. This soliton can be interpreted as a certain intersection…
After reviewing the oscillator realization of the symmetry superalgebra of the BMN matrix model on its maximally supersymmetric plane-wave background and the construction of its zero-mode spectrum, we study a large number of non-maximally supersymmetric pp-wave algebras in eleven dimensions which are obtained by various restrictions from the maximally supersymmetric case (BMN model). We also show how to obtain their zero-mode spectra, which we explicitly construct in some chosen examples. Except for some `exotic' or degenerate special cases, we believe our study covers all possible interesting…
Twisted modules for N=2 supersymmetric vertex operator superalgebras are classified for the vertex operator superalgebra automorphisms which are lifts of a finite automorphism of the N=2 Neveu-Schwarz Lie superalgebra representation. These include the Ramond-twisted sectors and mirror-twisted sectors for N=2 vertex operator superalgebras, as well as twisted modules related to more general "spectral flow" representations of the N=2 Neveu-Schwarz algebra. We present the construct of twisted modules for free N=2 vertex operator superalgebras for all of the N=2 Neveu-Schwarz Lie superalgebra autom…
The algebraic approach is employed to formulate N=2 supersymmetry transformations in the context of integrable systems based on loop superalgebras $\hat{\rm sl}(p+1,p), p \ge 1$ with homogeneous gradation. We work with extended integrable hierarchies, which contain supersymmetric AKNS and Lund-Regge sectors. We derive the one-soliton solution for $p=1$ which solves positive and negative evolution equations of the N=2 supersymmetric model.
Dynamical systems which are invariant under N=1 supersymmetric extension of the l-conformal Galilei algebra are constructed. These include a free N=1 superparticle which is governed by higher derivative equations of motion and an N=1 supersymmetric Pais-Uhlenbeck oscillator for a particular choice of its frequencies. A Niederer-like transformation which links the models is proposed.
The property of the conformal algebra to contain the Schrödinger algebra in one less space dimension is extended to the supersymmetric case. More precisely, we determine the counterpart of any field theory admissible super conformal algebra. Even if each type of superalgebra provides a different solution, its basis decomposition into two copies of the super Schrödinger algebra, differing only by their super Heisenberg part, remains valid in all the cases, so generalizing a feature already observed in the non supersymmetric conformal case.
Using recent results of the author along with Vander Werf, we present the classification and construction of mirror-twisted modules for N=2 supersymmetric vertex operator superalgebras of the form $V \otimes V$ for the signed transposition mirror map automorphism. In particular, we show that the category of such mirror-twisted sectors for $V\otimes V$ is isomorphic to the category of N=1 Ramond sectors for $V$.
Higher-derivative terms in the string and M-theory effective actions are strongly constrained by supersymmetry. Using a mixture of techniques, involving both string amplitude calculations and an analysis of supersymmetry requirements, we determine the supersymmetric completion of the R^4 action in eleven dimensions to second order in the fermions, in a form compact enough for explicit further calculations. Using these results, we obtain the modifications to the field transformation rules and determine the resulting field-dependent modifications to the coefficients in the supersymmetry algebra.…
We explore $\mathcal{N}=1$ supersymmetric extensions of algebras going beyond the Poincaré and AdS ones in three spacetime dimensions. Besides reproducing two known examples, we present new superalgebras, which all correspond to supersymmetric extensions with one fermionic charge $Q_α$ concerning the so-called resonant algebras being characterized by the presence of an additional bosonic generator $Z_{a}$, besides the Lorentz $J_{a}$ and translation $P_{a}$ generators. Obtained eight supersymmetric $JPZ+Q$ schemes result directly from obeying super-Jacobi identities. We point out particular re…
In this paper we explore the relation between conformal superalgebras with 64 supercharges and maximal supergravity theories in three, four and six dimensions using twistorial oscillator techniques. The massless fields of N=8 supergravity in four dimensions were shown to fit into a CPT-self-conjugate doubleton supermultiplet of the conformal superalgebra SU(2,2|8) a long time ago. We show that the fields of maximal supergravity in three dimensions can similarly be fitted into the super singleton multiplet of the conformal superalgebra OSp(16|4,R), which is related to the doubleton supermultipl…
An alternative way of introducing the supersymmetric cosmological term in a supergravity theory is presented. We show that the $AdS$-Lorentz superalgebra allows to construct a geometrical formulation of supergravity containing a generalized supersymmetric cosmological constant. The $N=1$, $D=4$ supergravity action is built only from the curvatures of the $AdS$-Lorentz superalgebra and corresponds to a MacDowell-Mansouri like action. The extension to a generalized $AdS$-Lorentz superalgebra is also analyzed.
We prove that, for M theory or type II, generic Minkowski flux backgrounds preserving $\mathcal{N}$ supersymmetries in dimensions $D\geq4$ correspond precisely to integrable generalised $G_{\mathcal{N}}$ structures, where $G_{\mathcal{N}}$ is the generalised structure group defined by the Killing spinors. In other words, they are the analogues of special holonomy manifolds in $E_{d(d)} \times\mathbb{R}^+$ generalised geometry. In establishing this result, we introduce the Kosmann-Dorfman bracket, a generalisation of Kosmann's Lie derivative of spinors. This allows us to write down the internal…
We present a geometric formulation of $(p,q)$-strings in which the $Sl(2;Z)$-doublet of the two-form gauge potentials is constructed as second order in the supersymmetric currents. The currents are constructed using a supergroup manifold corresponding to the $(p,q)$-string superalgebra, which contains fermionic generators in addition to the supercharges and transforms under the $Sl(2;Z)$. The properties of the superalgebra and the generalizations to higher $p$-branes are discussed.
We consider the inclusion of brane charges in AdS_5 superalgebras that contain the maximal central extension of the super-Poincaré algebra on the boundary of AdS_5. For theories with N supersymmetries on the boundary, the maximal extension is OSp(1/8N,R), which contains the group $Sp(8N,R)\supset U(2N,2N) \supset SU(2,2)\times U(N)$ as extension of the conformal group. An ``intermediate'' extension to U(2N,2N/1) is also discussed, as well as the inclusion of brane charges in AdS_7 and AdS_4 superalgebras. BPS conditions in the presence of brane charges are studied in some details.
We derive the spacetime superalgebras explicitly from ``test'' p-brane actions in a D-8-brane (i.e. a massive IIA) background to the lowest order in $θ$ via canonical formalism, and show that the forms of the superalgebras are the same as those in all the other D-brane (i.e. massless IIA) backgrounds, that is, they are indifferent to the presence of the Chern-Simons terms which are proportional to the mass and added to the D-brane actions in the case of massive IIA backgrounds. Thus, we can say that all the D-brane background solutions including a D-8-brane are on equal footing from the viewpo…
The issue of constructing N=1,2,3 supersymmetric extensions of the l-conformal Galilei algebra is reconsidered following the approach in [JHEP 1709 (2017) 131]. Drawing a parallel between acceleration generators entering the superalgebra and irreducible supermultiplets of d=1, N-extended superconformal group, a new N=1 l-conformal Galilei superalgebra, two new N=2 variants, and two new N=3 versions are built. Realisations in terms of differential operators in superspace are given.
We construct the Killing superalgebra of supersymmetric backgrounds of ten-dimensional heterotic and type II supergravities and prove that it is a Lie superalgebra. We also show that if the fraction of supersymmetry preserved by the background is greater than 1/2, in the heterotic case, or greater than 3/4 in the type II case, then the background is locally homogeneous.
The forms in D-dimensional (half-)maximal supergravity theories are discussed for 3 $\leq$ D $\leq$ 11. Superspace methods are used to derive consistent sets of Bianchi identities for all the forms for all degrees, and to show that they are soluble and fully compatible with supersymmetry. The Bianchi identities determine Lie superalgebras that can be extended to Borcherds superalgebras of a special type. It is shown that any Borcherds superalgebra of this type gives the same form spectrum, up to an arbitrary degree, as an associated Kac-Moody algebra. For maximal supergravity up to D-form pote…
We study the algebraic structure of the Killing superalgebra of a supersymmetric background of $11$-dimensional supergravity and show that it is isomorphic to a filtered deformation of a $\mathbb Z$-graded subalgebra of the Poincaré superalgebra. We are able to map the classification problem for highly supersymmetric backgrounds (i.e., those which preserve more than half the supersymmetry) to the classification problem of a certain class of filtered deformations of graded subalgebras of the Poincaré superalgebra. We show that one can reconstruct a highly supersymmetric background from its Kill…
We derive the spacetime superalgebras explicitly from ``test'' M-brane actions in M-brane backgrounds to the lowest order in $θ$ via canonical formalism, and discuss various BPS saturated configurations on the basis of their central charges which depend on the harmonic functions determined by the backgrounds. All the 1/4 supersymmetric intersections of two M-branes obtained previously are deduced from the requirement of the test branes to be so ``gauge fixed'' in the brane backgrounds as to preserve 1/4 supersymmetry. Furthermore, some of 1/2-supersymmetric bound states of two M-branes are ded…
We determine the Killing superalgebras underpinning field theories with rigid unextended supersymmetry on Lorentzian four-manifolds by re-interpreting them as filtered deformations of $\mathbb{Z}$-graded subalgebras with maximum odd dimension of the $N{=}1$ Poincaré superalgebra in four dimensions. Part of this calculation involves computing a Spencer cohomology group which, by analogy with a similar result in eleven dimensions, prescribes a notion of Killing spinor, which we identify with the defining condition for bosonic supersymmetric backgrounds of minimal off-shell supergravity in four d…
We present a symbolic method for organizing the representation theory of one-dimensional superalgebras. This relies on special objects, which we have called adinkra symbols, which supply tangible geometric forms to the still-emerging mathematical basis underlying supersymmetry.
In the recent paper, Bruce and Duplij introduced a double-graded version of supersymmetric quantum mechanics (SQM). It is an extension of Lie superalgebraic nature of ${\cal N}=1$ SQM to a $\mathbb{Z}_2^2$-graded superalgebra. In this work, we propose an extension of Bruce-Duplij model to higher values of $\cal N.$ Furthermore, it is shown that our construction of double-graded SQM is a special case of the method which converts a given Lie superalgebra to a $\mathbb{Z}_2^2$-graded superalgebra. By employing this method one may convert a model of superconformal mechanics to its double-graded ve…
We study the degeneracy of quarter BPS dyons in N =4 type II compactifications of string theory. We find that the genus-two Siegel modular forms generating the degeneracies of the quarter BPS dyons in the type II theories can be expressed in terms of the genus-two Siegel modular forms generating the degeneracies of quarter BPS dyons in the CHL theories and the heterotic string. This helps us in understanding the algebra structure underlying the degeneracy of the quarter BPS states. The Conway group, Co_1, plays a role similar to Mathieu group, M_{24}, in the CHL models with eta quotients appea…
We study the superalgebra of the M-theory on a fully supersymmetric pp-wave. We identify the algebra as the special unitary Lie superalgebra, su(2|4;2,0) or su(2|4;2,4), and analyze its root structure. We discuss the typical and atypical representations deriving the typicality condition explicitly in terms of the energy and other four quantum numbers. We classify the BPS multiplets preserving 4,8,12,16 real supercharges and obtain the corresponding spectrum. We show that in the BPS multiplet either the lowest energy floor is an su(2) singlet or the highest energy floor is an su(4) singlet.
The superalgebra of $\Z_2^2$-graded supersymmetric quantum mechanics is shown to be realizable in terms of a single bosonic degree of freedom. Such an approach is directly inspired by a description of the corresponding $\Z_2$-graded superalgebra in the framework of a Calogero-Vasiliev algebra or, more generally, of a generalized deformed oscillator algebra. In the case of the $\Z_2^2$-graded superalgebra, the central element $Z$ has the property of distinguishing between degenerate eigenstates of the Hamiltonian.
We construct explicitly classical and quantum supercharges satisfying the standard N = 4 supersymmetry algebra in the supersymmetric sigma models describing the motion over HKT (hyper-Kaehler with torsion) manifolds. One member of the family of superalgebras thus obtained is equivalent to the superalgebra derived and formulated earlier in the purely mathematical framework.
Inequivalent N=2 supersymmetrizations of the l-conformal Galilei algebra in d-spatial dimensions are constructed from the chiral (2,2) and the real (1,2,1) basic supermultiplets of the N=2 supersymmetry. For non-negative integer and half-integer l both superalgebras admit a consistent truncation with a (different) finite number of generators. The real N=2 case coincides with the superalgebra introduced by Masterov, while the chiral N=2 case is a new superalgebra. We present D-module representations of both superalgebras. Then we investigate the new superalgebra derived from the chiral supermul…
We propose a correspondence between vertex operator superalgebras and families of sigma models in which the two structures are related by symmetry properties and a certain reflection procedure. The existence of such a correspondence is motivated by previous work on N=(4,4) supersymmetric non-linear sigma models on K3 surfaces and on a vertex operator superalgebra with Conway group symmetry. Here we present an example of the correspondence for N=(4,4) supersymmetric non-linear sigma models on four-tori, and compare it to the K3 case.
We obtain an infinite sequence of bosonic non-local conserved quantities for the N=1 supersymmetric Korteweg-de Vries equation. It is generated from a bosonic non-local conserved quantity of Super Gardner equation. In distinction to the already known one with odd parity and dimension 1/2, it has even parity and dimension 1. It fits exactly in the supersymmetric cohomology in the space of conserved quantities that we also introduce here. Using results from this cohomology we obtain the Poisson bracket of several non-local conserved quantities, including the already known odd ones and the new ev…
We consider the exact solution of a model of correlated electrons based on the superalgebra $Osp(2|2)$. The corresponding Bethe ansatz equations have an interesting form. We derive an expression for the ground state energy at half filling. We also present the eigenvalue of the transfer matrix commuting with the Hamiltonian.
The BPS method is used to find BPS solutions of the worldvolume theory of a D5-brane in the near horizon geometry of a D3-brane. The BPS bound is interpreted in terms of the `maximally extended' D5 worldvolume supersymmetry algebra in the corresponding curved background, which is OSp(1|16). This algebra is an extension of the worldvolume superalgebra OSp(4^*|4). The analysis is generalized to the non-near horizon case.
The N-extended Supersymmetric Quantum Mechanics is deformed via an abelian twist which preserves the super-Hopf algebra structure of its Universal Enveloping Superalgebra. Two constructions are possible. For even N one can identify the 1D N-extended superalgebra with the fermionic Heisenberg algebra. Alternatively, supersymmetry generators can be realized as operators belonging to the Universal Enveloping Superalgebra of one bosonic and several fermionic oscillators. The deformed system is described in terms of twisted operators satisfying twist-deformed (anti)commutators. The main differences…
We study the linear differential system associated with the supersymmetric affine Toda field equations for affine Lie superalgebras, which has a purely odd simple root system. For an affine Lie algebra, the linear problem modified by conformal transformation leads to an ordinary differential equation (ODE) that provides the functional relations in the integrable models. This is known as the ODE/IM correspondence. For the affine Lie superalgebras, the linear equations modified by a superconformal transformation are shown to reduce to a couple of ODEs for each bosonic subalgebra. In particular, …
In this paper, we present novel non-relativistic superalgebras which correspond to supersymmetric extensions of the enlarged extended Bargmann algebra. The three-dimensional non-relativistic Chern-Simons supergravity actions invariant under the aforementioned superalgebras are constructed. The new non-relativistic superalgebras allow to accommodate a cosmological constant in a non-relativistic supergravity theory. Interestingly, we show that one of the non-relativistic supergravity theories presented here leads to the recently introduced Maxwellian exotic Bargmann supergravity when the flat li…
We calculate the relevant Spencer cohomology of the minimal Poincaré superalgebra in 5 spacetime dimensions and use it to define Killing spinors via a connection on the spinor bundle of a 5-dimensional lorentzian spin manifold. We give a definition of bosonic backgrounds in terms of this data. By imposing constraints on the curvature of the spinor connection, we recover the field equations of minimal (ungauged) 5-dimensional supergravity, but also find a set of field equations for an $\mathfrak{sp}(1)$-valued one-form which we interpret as the bosonic data of a class of rigid supersymmetric th…
We show that all IIB supergravity backgrounds which admit more than 28 Killing spinors are maximally supersymmetric. In particular, we find that for all N>28 backgrounds the supercovariant curvature vanishes, and that the quotients of maximally supersymmetric backgrounds either preserve all 32 or N<29 supersymmetries.
Some key features of the symmetries of the Schrödinger equation that are common to a much broader class of dynamical systems (some under construction) are illustrated. I discuss the algebra/superalgebra duality involving first and second-order differential operators. It provides different viewpoints for the spectrum-generating subalgebras. The representation-dependent notion of on-shell symmetry is introduced. The difference in associating the time-derivative symmetry operator with either a root or a Cartan generator of the $sl(2)$ subalgebra is discussed. In application to one-dimensional Lag…
An infinite series of Grassmann-odd and Grassmann-even flow equations is defined for a class of supersymmetric integrable hierarchies associated with loop superalgebras. All these flows commute with the mutually commuting bosonic ones originally considered to define these hierarchies and, hence, provide extra fermionic and bosonic symmetries that include the built-in N=1 supersymmetry transformation. The corresponding non-local conserved quantities are also constructed. As an example, the particular case of the principal supersymmetric hierarchies associated with the affine superalgebras with …
We calculate the Spencer cohomology of the $(1,0)$ Poincaré superalgebras in six dimensions: with and without R-symmetry. As the cases of four and eleven dimensions taught us, we may read off from this calculation a Killing spinor equation which allows the determination of which geometries admit rigidly supersymmetric theories in this dimension. We prove that the resulting Killing spinors generate a Lie superalgebra and determine the geometries admitting the maximal number of such Killing spinors. They are divided in two branches. One branch consists of the lorentzian Lie groups with bi-invari…
The family of Tremblay-Turbiner-Winternitz (TTW) Hamiltonians $H_k$ on a plane, corresponding to any positive real value of $k$, is shown to admit another ${\cal N} = 2$ supersymmetric extension than that previously introduced by the present author. This new extension is of the same kind as that considered by D'Hoker and Vinet in the study of magnetic monopoles and is characterized by the fact that all the irreducible representations of the corresponding ${\rm osp}(2/2, \R)$ dynamical superalgebra are atypical lowest-weight state ones. The new supersymmetric Hamiltonians may be referred to as …
In this paper we give a general introduction to supersymmetric spin networks. Its construction has a direct interpretation in context of the representation theory of the superalgebra. In particular we analyze a special kind of spin networks with superalgebra $Osp(1|2n)$. It turns out that the set of corresponding spin network states forms an orthogonal basis of the Hilbert space $\cal L\mit^2(\cal A\mit/\cal G)$, and this argument holds even in the q-deformed case. The $Osp(n|2)$ spin networks are also discussed briefly. We expect they could provide useful techniques to quantum supergravity an…
We study supersymmetric AdS$_D$ backgrounds of eleven-dimensional or type II supergravity preserving $\mathcal{N}$ supersymmetries using generalised geometry. We show that a large class correspond precisely to spaces admitting a generalised $G_{D,\mathcal{N}}$ structure with a weak integrability condition, which we call "weak generalised holonomy". This class contains all such backgrounds with odd $D$, but for even $D$ we must impose a technical assumption concerning the inner products of Killing spinors. It is known that all compact smooth solutions are included, though our analysis is purely…
In this work we obtain known and new supersymmetric extensions of diverse asymptotic symmetries defined in three spacetime dimensions by considering the semigroup expansion method. The super-$BMS_3$, the superconformal algebra and new infinite-dimensional superalgebras are obtained by expanding the super-Virasoro algebra. The new superalgebras obtained are supersymmetric extensions of the asymptotic algebras of the Maxwell and the $\mathfrak{so}(2,2)\oplus\mathfrak{so}(2,1)$ gravity theories. We extend our results to the $\mathcal{N}=2$ and $\mathcal{N}=4$ cases and find that R-symmetry genera…
An N=4 supersymmetric extension of the l-conformal Galilei algebra is constructed. This is achieved by combining generators of spatial symmetries from the l-conformal Galilei algebra and those underlying the most general superconformal group in one dimension D(2,1;a). The value of the group parameter a is fixed from the requirement that the resulting superalgebra is finite-dimensional. The analysis reveals a=-1/2 thus reducing D(2,1;a) to OSp(4|2).
We show that we can combine the (complex, self-dual) BMS vector fields with the recently defined BMS twistors to obtain a new supersymmetric extension of the BMS symmetries at null infinity. We compare our construction to other supersymmetric extensions of the BMS algebra proposed in the context of supergravity. Unlike the standard constructions the anticommutator in our superalgebra generates all the BMS vector fields including the Lorentz transformations. We also show that there exists a projection from our BMS Lie superalgebra to the global subalgebra of the Neveu-Schwarz supersymmetries on…
We recover the classification of the maximally supersymmetric bosonic backgrounds of eleven-dimensional supergravity by Lie algebraic means. We classify all filtered deformations of the $\mathbb Z$-graded subalgebras $\mathfrak{h}=\mathfrak{h}_{-2}\oplus\mathfrak{h}_{-1}\oplus\mathfrak{h}_{0}$ of the Poincaré superalgebra $\mathfrak{g}=\mathfrak{g}_{-2}\oplus\mathfrak{g}_{-1}\oplus\mathfrak{g}_{0}=V\oplus S\oplus \mathfrak{so}(V)$ which differ only in zero degree, that is $\mathfrak{h}_0\subset\mathfrak{g}_0$ and $\mathfrak{h}_j=\mathfrak{g}_j$ for $j<0$. Aside from the Poincaré superalgebra i…
We present a maximally supersymmetric IIB string background. The geometry is that of a conformally flat lorentzian symmetric space G/K with solvable G, with a homogeneous five-form flux. We give the explicit supergravity solution, compute the isometries, the 32 Killing spinors, and the symmetry superalgebra, and then discuss T-duality and the relation to M-theory.
A recent study of filtered deformations of (graded subalgebras of) the minimal five-dimensional Poincaré superalgebra resulted in two classes of maximally supersymmetric spacetimes. One class are the well-known maximally supersymmetric backgrounds of minimal five-dimensional supergravity, whereas the other class does not seem to be related to supergravity. This paper is a study of the Kaluza--Klein reductions to four dimensions of this latter class of maximally supersymmetric spacetimes. We classify the lorentzian and riemannian Kaluza--Klein reductions of these backgrounds, determine the frac…
We present an action for $N=1$ supergravity in $10+2$ dimensions, containing the gauge fields of the $OSp(1|64)$ superalgebra, i.e. one-forms $B^{(n)}$ with $n$=1,2,5,6,9,10 antisymmetric D=12 Lorentz indices and a Majorana gravitino $ψ$. The vielbein and spin connection correspond to $B^{(1)}$ and $B^{(2)}$ respectively. The action is not gauge invariant under the full $OSp(1|64)$ superalgebra, but only under a subalgebra ${\tilde F}$ (containing the $F$ algebra $OSp(1|32)$), whose gauge fields are $B^{(2)}$, $B^{(6)}$, $B^{(10)}$ and the Weyl projected Majorana gravitino ${1 \over 2} (1+Γ_{1…
We consider bosonic supersymmetric backgrounds of ten-dimensional conformal supergravity. Up to local conformal isometry, we classify the maximally supersymmetric backgrounds, determine their conformal symmetry superalgebras and show how they arise as near-horizon geometries of certain half-BPS backgrounds or as a plane-wave limit thereof. We then show how to define Yang-Mills theory with rigid supersymmetry on any supersymmetric conformal supergravity background and, in particular, on the maximally supersymmetric backgrounds. We conclude by commenting on a striking resemblance between the sup…
