A folk model structure on omega-cat

Abstract

We establish a model structure on the category of strict omega-categories. The constructions leading to the model structure in question are expressed entirely within the scope of omega-categories, building on a set of generating cofibrations and a class of weak equivalences as basic items. All object are fibrant while cofibrant objects are exactly the free ones. Our model structure transfers to n-categories along right-adjoints, for each n, thus recovering the known cases n = 1 and n = 2.