A graphical category for higher modular operads (Q2308300)

In this paper, the authors consider up-to homotopy modular operads, and present a homotopy theory for them. To do that they introduce a category \textbf{U} of undirected graphs. This category plays a similar role for modular operads that the dendroidal category plays for operads. It is a subcategory of the category of Feynman graphs studied by \textit{A. Joyal} and \textit{J. Kock} [Electron. Notes Theor. Comput. Sci. 270, No. 2, 105--113 (2011; Zbl 1348.81242)]. The authors prove that the weak factorization system of the category of Joyal and Kock becomes an orthogonal factorization system on \textbf{U}. They also show that there is a generalized Reedy structure on \textbf{U}. The core of the paper is the investigation of the homotopy theory of simplicial \textbf{U}-presheaves. Such a presheaf \(X\) is said to satisfy the Segal condition if the value of \(X\) at a graph \(G\) is determined up to homotopy by its values at the vertices of \(G\). Furthermore, if the value of \(X\) at an edge is contractible, then \(X\) is called a Segal modular operad. The authors show that the category of simplicial \textbf{U}-presheaves admits a Quillen model structure whose fibrant objects are the Segal modular operads.