Supergravity backgrounds and symmetry superalgebras

We consider the bosonic sectors of supergravity theories in ten and eleven dimensions which correspond to the low energy limits of string theories and M-theory. The solutions of supergravity field equations are known as supergravity backgrounds and the number of preserved supersymmetries in those backgrounds are determined by Killing spinors. We provide some examples of supergravity backgrounds which preserve different fractions of supersymmetry. An important invariant for the characterization of supergravity backgrounds is their Killing superalgebras which are constructed out of Killing vectors and Killing spinors of the background. After constructing Killing superalgebras of some special supergravity backgrounds, we discuss about the possibilities of the extensions of these superalgebras to include the higher degree hidden symmetries of the background.