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HeinrichD
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There won't be any property which really distinguishes $\mathcal{O}_X$ inside $\mathsf{Mod}(X)$, since any invertible $\mathcal{O}_X$-module $\mathcal{L}$ induces an auto-equivalence of categories $\mathcal{L} \otimes -$. Instead, we may hope for properties of invertible $\mathcal{O}_X$-modules (which only have to be proven for the special case $\mathcal{O}_X$ as soon as they are categorical). I hope that you don't mind that I switch to $\mathsf{Qcoh}(X)$ when appropriate, because $\mathsf{Mod}(X)$ is too large and does not really incorporate the condition that $X$ is a scheme.

  1. Let $\mathcal{L}$ be an invertible $\mathcal{O}_X$-module. Then every epimorphism $\mathcal{L} \to \mathcal{L}$ is an isomorphism.

  2. The endomorphism ring $\mathrm{End}(\mathcal{L})$ is commutative. In particular, the group $\mathrm{Aut}(\mathcal{L})$ is commutative.

  3. If $X$ is quasi-compact and quasi-separated, then $\mathcal{L}$ is a finitely presentable object of $\mathsf{Qcoh}(X)$.

  4. If $X$ is separated, then every quasi-coherent $\mathcal{O}_X$-module is a subquotient of a direct sum of copies of $\mathcal{L}$. I don't know a classical reference for this (anyone?), but it is proven in Proposition 3.18 here (let $I=0$ there).

HeinrichD
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