In this note we prove the following surprising characterization: if $X\,\subset \,{{\mathbb{A}}^{n}}$ is an (embedded, non-empty, proper) algebraic variety deûned over a field $k$ of characteristic zero, then $X$ is a hypersurface if and only if the module ${{T}_{{{O}_{{{\mathbb{A}}^{n\,/k}}}}}}(X)$ of logarithmic vector fields of $X$ is a reflexive ${{O}_{{{\mathbb{A}}^{n}}}}$-module. As a consequence of this result, we derive that if ${{T}_{{{O}_{{{\mathbb{A}}^{n\,/k}}}}}}(X)$ is a free ${{O}_{{{\mathbb{A}}^{n}}}}$-module, which is shown to be equivalent to the freeness of the $t$-th exterior power of ${{T}_{{{O}_{{{\mathbb{A}}^{n\,/k}}}}}}(X)$ for some (in fact, any) $t\,\le \,n$, then necessarily $X$ is a Saito free divisor.

We introduce a dual logarithmic residue map for hypersurface singularities and use it to answer a question of Kyoji Saito. Our result extends a theorem of Lê and Saito by an algebraic characterization of hypersurfaces that are normal crossing in codimension one. For free divisors, we relate the latter condition to other natural conditions involving the Jacobian ideal and the normalization. This leads to an algebraic characterization of normal crossing divisors. As a side result, we describe all free divisors with Gorenstein singular locus.

Generalizing a result of Yoshinaga in dimension three, we show that a central hyperplane arrangement in 4-space is free exactly if its restriction with multiplicities to a fixed hyperplane of the arrangement is free and its reduced characteristic polynomial equals the characteristic polynomial of this restriction. We show that the same statement holds true in any dimension when imposing certain tameness hypotheses.

In this article, we prove that a free divisor in a three-dimensional complex manifold must be Euler homogeneous in a strong sense if the cohomology of its complement is the hypercohomology of its logarithmic differential forms. Calderón-Moreno et al. conjectured this implication in all dimensions and proved it in dimension two. We prove a theorem that describes in all dimensions a special minimal system of generators for the module of formal logarithmic vector fields. This formal structure theorem is closely related to the formal decomposition of a vector field by Kyoji Saito and is used in the proof of the above result. Another consequence of the formal structure theorem is that the truncated Lie algebras of logarithmic vector fields up to dimension three are solvable. We give an example that this may fail in higher dimensions.

We find explicit free resolutions for the D-modules Dfs and D[s] fs / D[s] fs+1, where f is a reduced equation of a locally quasi-homogeneous free divisor. These results are based on the fact that every locally quasi-homogeneous free divisor is Koszul free, which is also proved in this paper.

We introduce a variant of the usual K\"{a}hler forms on singular free divisors, and show that it enjoys the same depth properties as K\"{a}hler forms on isolated hypersurface singularities. Using these forms it is possible to describe analytically the vanishing cohomology, and the Gauss--Manin connection, in families of free divisors, in precise analogy with the classical description for the Milnor fibration of an isolated complete intersection singularity, due to Brieskorn and Greuel. This applies in particular to the family $\{D(f_\lambda)\}_{\lambda\in \Lambda}$ of discriminants of a versal deformation $\{f_\lambda\}_{\lambda\in\Lambda}$ of a singularity of a mapping. 1991 Mathematics Subject Classification: 14B07, 14D05, 32S40.