%0 Journal Article
%T Higher-Dimensional Algebra IV: 2-Tangles
%A John C. Baez
%A Laurel Langford
%J Mathematics
%D 1998
%I arXiv
%X Just as knots and links can be algebraically described as certain morphisms in the category of tangles in 3 dimensions, compact surfaces smoothly embedded in R^4 can be described as certain 2-morphisms in the 2-category of `2-tangles in 4 dimensions'. Using the work of Carter, Rieger and Saito, we prove that this 2-category is the `free semistrict braided monoidal 2-category with duals on one unframed self-dual object'. By this universal property, any unframed self-dual object in a braided monoidal 2-category with duals determines an invariant of 2-tangles in 4 dimensions.
%U http://arxiv.org/abs/math/9811139v3