-
To see how any formula was written in any question or answer, including this one, right-click on the expression it and choose "Show Math As > TeX Commands". (When you do this, the '$' will not display. Make sure you add these. See the next point.)
-
For inline formulas, enclose the formula in $...$
. For displayed formulas, use $$...$$
.
These render differently. For example, type
$\sum_{i=0}^n i^2 = \frac{(n^2+n)(2n+1)}{6}$
to show
∑ni=0i2=(n2+n)(2n+1)6
(which is inline mode) or type
$$\sum_{i=0}^n i^2 = \frac{(n^2+n)(2n+1)}{6}$$
to show
∑i=0ni2=(n2+n)(2n+1)6
(which is display mode). -
For Greek letters, use \alpha
, \beta
, …, \omega
:
α,β,…ω
. For uppercase, use \Gamma
, \Delta
, …, \Omega
:
Γ,Δ,…,Ω
.
-
For superscripts and subscripts, use ^
and _
. For example, x_i^2
:
x2i
, \log_2 x
:
log2x
.
-
Groups. Superscripts, subscripts, and other operations apply only to the next “group”. A “group” is either a single symbol, or any formula surrounded by curly braces {
…}
. If you do 10^10
, you will get a surprise:
1010
. But 10^{10}
gives what you probably wanted:
1010
. Use curly braces to delimit a formula to which a superscript or subscript applies: x^5^6
is an error; {x^y}^z
is
xyz
, and x^{y^z}
is
xyz
. Observe the difference between x_i^2
x2i
and x_{i^2}
xi2
.
-
Parentheses Ordinary symbols ()[]
make parentheses and brackets
(2+3)[4+4]
. Use \{
and \}
for curly braces
{}
.
These do not scale with the formula in between, so if you write (\frac{\sqrt x}{y^3})
the parentheses will be too small:
(x√y3)
. Using \left(
…\right)
will make the sizes adjust automatically to the formula they enclose: \left(\frac{\sqrt x}{y^3}\right)
is
(x√y3)
.
\left
and\right
apply to all the following sorts of parentheses: (
and )
(x)
, [
and ]
[x]
, \{
and \}
{x}
, |
|x|
, \vert
|x|
, \Vert
∥x∥
, \langle
and \rangle
⟨x⟩
, \lceil
and \rceil
⌈x⌉
, and \lfloor
and \rfloor
⌊x⌋
. There are also invisible parentheses, denoted by .
: \left.\frac12\right\rbrace
is
12}
.
-
Sums and integrals \sum
and \int
; the subscript is the lower limit and the superscript is the upper limit, so for example \sum_1^n
∑n1
. Don't forget {
…}
if the limits are more than a single symbol. For example, \sum_{i=0}^\infty i^2
is
∑∞i=0i2
. Similarly, \prod
∏
, \int
∫
, \bigcup
⋃
, \bigcap
⋂
, \iint
∬
.
-
Fractions There are two ways to make these. \frac ab
applies to the next two groups, and produces
ab
; for more complicated numerators and denominators use {
…}
: \frac{a+1}{b+1}
is
a+1b+1
. If the numerator and denominator are complicated, you may prefer \over
, which splits up the group that it is in: {a+1\over b+1}
is
a+1b+1
.
-
Fonts
- Use
\mathbb
or \Bbb
for "blackboard bold":
CHNQRZ
. - Use
\mathbf
for boldface:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
. - Use
\mathtt
for "typewriter" font:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
. - Use
\mathrm
for roman font:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
. - Use
\mathsf
for sans-serif font:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
. - Use
\mathcal
for "calligraphic" letters:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
- Use
\mathscr
for script letters:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
- Use
\mathfrak
for "Fraktur" (old German style) letters:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
.
-
Radical signs Use sqrt
, which adjusts to the size of its argument: \sqrt{x^3}
x3−−√
; \sqrt[3]{\frac xy}
xy−−√3
. For complicated expressions, consider using {...}^{1/2}
instead.
-
Some special functions such as "lim", "sin", "max", "ln", and so on are normally set in roman font instead of italic font. Use \lim
, \sin
, etc. to make these: \sin x
sinx
, not sin x
sinx
. Use subscripts to attach a notation to \lim
: \lim_{x\to 0}
limx→0
-
There are a very large number of special symbols and notations, too many to list here; see this shorter listing, or this exhaustive listing. Some of the most common include:
\lt \gt \le \ge \neq
<>≤≥≠
. You can use \not
to put a slash through almost anything: \not\lt
≮
but it often looks bad.\times \div \pm \mp
×÷±∓
. \cdot
is a centered dot:
x⋅y
\cup \cap \setminus \subset \subseteq \subsetneq \supset \in \notin \emptyset \varnothing
∪∩∖⊂⊆⊊⊃∈∉∅∅
{n+1 \choose 2k}
or \binom{n+1}{2k}
(n+12k)
\to \rightarrow \leftarrow \Rightarrow \Leftarrow \mapsto
→→←⇒⇐↦
\land \lor \lnot \forall \exists \top \bot \vdash \vDash
∧∨¬∀∃⊤⊥⊢⊨
\star \ast \oplus \circ \bullet
⋆∗⊕∘∙
\approx \sim \simeq \cong \equiv \prec \lhd
≈∼≃≅≡≺,⊲
.\infty \aleph_0
∞ℵ0
\nabla \partial
∇∂
\Im \Re
IR
- For modular equivalence, use
\pmod
like this: a\equiv b\pmod n
a≡b(modn)
. \ldots
is the dots in
a1,a2,…,an
\cdots
is the dots in
a1+a2+⋯+an
- Some Greek letters have variant forms:
\epsilon \varepsilon
ϵε
, \phi \varphi
ϕφ
, and others. Script lowercase l is \ell
ℓ
.
Detexify lets you draw a symbol on a web page and then lists the
TEX
symbols that seem to resemble it. These are not guaranteed to work in MathJax but are a good place to start. To check that a command is supported, note that MathJax.org maintains a list of currently supported
LATEX
commands, and one can also check Dr. Carol JVF Burns's page of
TEX
Commands Available in MathJax.
-
Spaces MathJax usually decides for itself how to space formulas, using a complex set of rules. Putting extra literal spaces into formulas will not change the amount of space MathJax puts in: a␣b
and a␣␣␣␣b
are both
ab
. To add more space, use \,
for a thin space
ab
; \;
for a wider space
ab
. \quad
and \qquad
are large spaces:
ab
,
ab
.
To set plain text, use \text{…}
:
{x∈s∣x is extra large}
. You can nest $…$
inside of \text{…}
.
-
Accents and diacritical marks Use \hat
for a single symbol
x^
, \widehat
for a larger formula
xyˆ
. If you make it too wide, it will look silly. Similarly, there are \bar
x¯
and \overline
xyz¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
, and \vec
x⃗
and \overrightarrow
xy−→
and \overleftrightarrow
xy←→
. For dots, as in
ddxxx˙=x˙2+xx¨
, use \dot
and \ddot
.
-
Special characters used for MathJax interpreting can be escaped using the \
character: \$
$
, \{
{
, \_
_
, etc. If you want \
itself, you should use \backslash
∖
, because \\
is for a new line.
The original link: http://meta.math.stackexchange.com/questions/5020/mathjax-basic-tutorial-and-quick-reference
To see how any formula was written in any question or answer, including this one, right-click on the expression it and choose "Show Math As > TeX Commands". (When you do this, the '$' will not display. Make sure you add these. See the next point.)
For inline formulas, enclose the formula in $...$
. For displayed formulas, use $$...$$
.
These render differently. For example, type
$\sum_{i=0}^n i^2 = \frac{(n^2+n)(2n+1)}{6}$
to show
∑ni=0i2=(n2+n)(2n+1)6
(which is inline mode) or type
$$\sum_{i=0}^n i^2 = \frac{(n^2+n)(2n+1)}{6}$$
to show
For Greek letters, use \alpha
, \beta
, …, \omega
:
α,β,…ω
. For uppercase, use \Gamma
, \Delta
, …, \Omega
:
Γ,Δ,…,Ω
.
For superscripts and subscripts, use ^
and _
. For example, x_i^2
:
x2i
, \log_2 x
:
log2x
.
Groups. Superscripts, subscripts, and other operations apply only to the next “group”. A “group” is either a single symbol, or any formula surrounded by curly braces {
…}
. If you do 10^10
, you will get a surprise:
1010
. But 10^{10}
gives what you probably wanted:
1010
. Use curly braces to delimit a formula to which a superscript or subscript applies: x^5^6
is an error; {x^y}^z
is
xyz
, and x^{y^z}
is
xyz
. Observe the difference between x_i^2
x2i
and x_{i^2}
xi2
.
Parentheses Ordinary symbols ()[]
make parentheses and brackets
(2+3)[4+4]
. Use \{
and \}
for curly braces
{}
.
These do not scale with the formula in between, so if you write (\frac{\sqrt x}{y^3})
the parentheses will be too small:
(x√y3)
. Using \left(
…\right)
will make the sizes adjust automatically to the formula they enclose: \left(\frac{\sqrt x}{y^3}\right)
is
(x√y3)
.
\left
and\right
apply to all the following sorts of parentheses: (
and )
(x)
, [
and ]
[x]
, \{
and \}
{x}
, |
|x|
, \vert
|x|
, \Vert
∥x∥
, \langle
and \rangle
⟨x⟩
, \lceil
and \rceil
⌈x⌉
, and \lfloor
and \rfloor
⌊x⌋
. There are also invisible parentheses, denoted by .
: \left.\frac12\right\rbrace
is
12}
.
Sums and integrals \sum
and \int
; the subscript is the lower limit and the superscript is the upper limit, so for example \sum_1^n
∑n1
. Don't forget {
…}
if the limits are more than a single symbol. For example, \sum_{i=0}^\infty i^2
is
∑∞i=0i2
. Similarly, \prod
∏
, \int
∫
, \bigcup
⋃
, \bigcap
⋂
, \iint
∬
.
Fractions There are two ways to make these. \frac ab
applies to the next two groups, and produces
ab
; for more complicated numerators and denominators use {
…}
: \frac{a+1}{b+1}
is
a+1b+1
. If the numerator and denominator are complicated, you may prefer \over
, which splits up the group that it is in: {a+1\over b+1}
is
a+1b+1
.
Fonts
- Use
\mathbb
or\Bbb
for "blackboard bold": CHNQRZ . - Use
\mathbf
for boldface: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz . - Use
\mathtt
for "typewriter" font: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz . - Use
\mathrm
for roman font: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz . - Use
\mathsf
for sans-serif font: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz . - Use
\mathcal
for "calligraphic" letters: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ - Use
\mathscr
for script letters: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ - Use
\mathfrak
for "Fraktur" (old German style) letters: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz .
Radical signs Use sqrt
, which adjusts to the size of its argument: \sqrt{x^3}
x3−−√
; \sqrt[3]{\frac xy}
xy−−√3
. For complicated expressions, consider using {...}^{1/2}
instead.
Some special functions such as "lim", "sin", "max", "ln", and so on are normally set in roman font instead of italic font. Use \lim
, \sin
, etc. to make these: \sin x
sinx
, not sin x
sinx
. Use subscripts to attach a notation to \lim
: \lim_{x\to 0}
There are a very large number of special symbols and notations, too many to list here; see this shorter listing, or this exhaustive listing. Some of the most common include:
\lt \gt \le \ge \neq
<>≤≥≠ . You can use\not
to put a slash through almost anything:\not\lt
≮ but it often looks bad.\times \div \pm \mp
×÷±∓ .\cdot
is a centered dot: x⋅y\cup \cap \setminus \subset \subseteq \subsetneq \supset \in \notin \emptyset \varnothing
∪∩∖⊂⊆⊊⊃∈∉∅∅{n+1 \choose 2k}
or\binom{n+1}{2k}
(n+12k)\to \rightarrow \leftarrow \Rightarrow \Leftarrow \mapsto
→→←⇒⇐↦\land \lor \lnot \forall \exists \top \bot \vdash \vDash
∧∨¬∀∃⊤⊥⊢⊨\star \ast \oplus \circ \bullet
⋆∗⊕∘∙\approx \sim \simeq \cong \equiv \prec \lhd
≈∼≃≅≡≺,⊲ .\infty \aleph_0
∞ℵ0\nabla \partial
∇∂\Im \Re
IR- For modular equivalence, use
\pmod
like this:a\equiv b\pmod n
a≡b(modn) . \ldots
is the dots in a1,a2,…,an\cdots
is the dots in a1+a2+⋯+an- Some Greek letters have variant forms:
\epsilon \varepsilon
ϵε ,\phi \varphi
ϕφ , and others. Script lowercase l is\ell
ℓ .
Detexify lets you draw a symbol on a web page and then lists the TEX symbols that seem to resemble it. These are not guaranteed to work in MathJax but are a good place to start. To check that a command is supported, note that MathJax.org maintains a list of currently supported LATEX commands, and one can also check Dr. Carol JVF Burns's page of TEX Commands Available in MathJax.
Spaces MathJax usually decides for itself how to space formulas, using a complex set of rules. Putting extra literal spaces into formulas will not change the amount of space MathJax puts in: a␣b
and a␣␣␣␣b
are both
ab
. To add more space, use \,
for a thin space
ab
; \;
for a wider space
ab
. \quad
and \qquad
are large spaces:
ab
,
ab
.
To set plain text, use \text{…}
:
{x∈s∣x is extra large}
. You can nest $…$
inside of \text{…}
.
Accents and diacritical marks Use \hat
for a single symbol
x^
, \widehat
for a larger formula
xyˆ
. If you make it too wide, it will look silly. Similarly, there are \bar
x¯
and \overline
xyz¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
, and \vec
x⃗
and \overrightarrow
xy−→
and \overleftrightarrow
xy←→
. For dots, as in
ddxxx˙=x˙2+xx¨
, use \dot
and \ddot
.
Special characters used for MathJax interpreting can be escaped using the \
character: \$
$
, \{
{
, \_
_
, etc. If you want \
itself, you should use \backslash
∖
, because \\
is for a new line.