Hodge filtration, minimal exponent, and local vanishing (Q1985458)

Let \(X\) be a smooth complex variety of dimension \(n\), let \(D\) be a reduced effective divisor on \(X\) and let \(\alpha\) be a positive rational number. Locally, assuming that \(D\) is defined by a regular function \(f\), we can consider the \(\mathcal D_X\)-module \(\mathcal M(f^{-\alpha}):=\mathcal O_X[1/f]f^{-\alpha}\), where \(f^{-\alpha}\) is a symbol on which \(\mathcal D_X\) acts in the usual way. That object is a generalization of the usual localization \(\mathcal O_X(*D)\) to \(\mathbb Q\)-divisors, and since it is a direct summand of a mixed Hodge module, it can be endowed with the structure of a complex mixed Hodge module. The paper under review studies the generation level of its Hodge filtration and some local vanishing results, improving some previous results of the same authors (cf. [J. Éc. Polytech., Math. 6, 283--328 (2019; Zbl 1427.14045)] and [Forum Math. Sigma 8, Paper No. e19, 41 p. (2020; Zbl 1451.14055).]). Let \(\widetilde\alpha_D\) be the minimal exponent of \(D\), that is, the negative of the largest root of the reduced Bernstein-Sato polynomial of \(D\), namely \(\widetilde b_D(s)=b_D(s)/(s+1)\), and call \(\widetilde\alpha_f\) its local version. This invariant, known to be a refined version of the log canonical threshold of \((X,D)\), plays an important role in both main theorems. The first one states that, if \(\operatorname{div}(f)\) is a singular divisor, then the Hodge filtration on \(\mathcal M(f^{-\alpha})\) is generated at level \(n-\lceil\widetilde\alpha_f+\alpha\rceil\). This is a notable improvement from the previous general result in the same vein whenever \(\widetilde\alpha_f>1\), that is, when \(D\) has rational singularities. This is equivalent to the vanishing of the higher direct images \(\mathbf R^i\mu_*(\Omega_Y^{n-i}(\operatorname{log}E)\otimes_{\mathcal O_Y}\mathcal O_Y(-\lceil\mu^*\alpha D\rceil))\) for every \(i>n-\lceil\widetilde\alpha_f+\alpha\rceil\), where \(\mu:Y\rightarrow X\) is a log resolution of \((X,D)\) and \(E=(\mu^*D)_{\operatorname{red}}\). The second main result of the paper deals with another local vanishing result in the case \(\alpha=0\). If we now denote by \(\mu:\widetilde D\rightarrow D\) a resolution of singularities in such a way that \(E\) is now \((\mu^*D_{\operatorname{sing}})_{\operatorname{red}}\), a simple normal crossing divisor, we have that \(\mathbf R^i\mu_*\Omega_{\widetilde D}^{n-1-i}(\operatorname{log}E)=0\) for all \(i>n-1-\lceil\widetilde\alpha_D\rceil\), assuming that \(\dim D=n-1\). The technical core of the paper is a careful and clever refinement of a bound to the generation level of the Hodge filtration on a mixed Hodge module \(\mathcal M\) (the true hypothesis are less particular) due to \textit{M. Saito} [Bull. Soc. Math. Fr. 122, No. 2, 163--184 (1994; Zbl 0810.32004)]. The authors apply it to any mixed Hodge module which is self-dual up to a Tate twist, like \(\operatorname{Gr}_V^\alpha(\iota_+\mathcal O_X)\), for any \(\alpha\in(0,1]\) and \(\iota:X\rightarrow X\times\mathbb C_t\) being the graph immersion, and deduce the main results above from the latter and some more work relating the Hodge filtrations on both the graded pieces \(\operatorname{Gr}_V^\alpha(\iota_+\mathcal O_X)\) and \(\mathcal M(f^{-\alpha})\).