Residues of higher order and holomorphic vector fields

LetX ₁ andX ₂ be two holomorphic vector fields on a manifoldV with complex dimensionp. Assume that they have the same singular set . For all , it is known (after Chern-Bott) that each of the vector fields defines a residual characteristic classC ₁(V,X ₁)(resp.C ₁(V,X ₂)) inH ^2p (V, V-), which is a lift of the usual characteristic classC ₁ (V) of the tangent bundle. The differenceC ₁ (V,X ₂)-C ₁ (V,X ₁) belongs then to the image of in the exact sequence. In fact, there exists a canonical liftC ₁ (V,X ₁,X ₂) of this difference inH ^2p–1(V-): we will call itthe residual class of order 2 (associated toI, X ₁ andX ₂). This class is localized near the points whereX ₁ andX ₂ are colinear: we will explain this precisely in terms of Grothendieck residues. The formula that we obtain can be interpreted as a generalization of the purely algebraic identity, obtained from the general one as a byproduct: where ( ₁, , _p) and ( ₁,, _p ) denote two families of non-zero complex numbers, such that all denominators in this formula do not vanish. (This identity corresponds in fact to the case whereX ₁ andX ₂ are non-degenerate at the same isolated singular point.)If the _i 's (1ip) depend now differentiably (resp. holomorphically) on a real (resp. complex) parametert then, denoting by the derivative with respect tot, and assuming all numbers lying in a denominator not to be 0, we can deduce from the above identity the following derivation formula: