Higher Derivative Supergravities in Diverse Dimensions

Abstract

We survey on-shell and off-shell higher derivative supergravities in dimensions $1\le D\le 11$. Various approaches to their construction, including the Noether procedure, (harmonic) superspace, superform method, superconformal tensor calculus, $S$-matrix and dimensional reduction, are summarized. Primarily the bosonic parts of the invariants and the supertransformations of the fermionic fields are provided. The process of going on-shell, solutions to the Killing spinor equations, typical supersymmetric solutions, and the role of duality symmetries in the context of $R^4,D^4{R}^4$ and $D^6{R}^4$ invariants are reviewed.

Comments: 156 pages, discussions and references added, typos fixed. Version to appear in Physics Reports