Help:Displaying a formula

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MediaWiki uses a subset of TeX markup, including some extensions from LaTeX and AMS-LaTeX, for mathematical formulae. It generates either PNG images or simple HTML markup, depending on user preferences and the complexity of the expression. In the future, as more browsers are smarter, it will be able to generate enhanced HTML or even MathML in many cases. (See blahtex for information about current work on adding MathML support.)

More precisely, MediaWiki filters the markup through Texvc, which in turn passes the commands to TeX for the actual rendering. Thus, only a limited part of the full TeX language is supported; see below for details.

Syntax

Math markup goes inside <math> ... </math>. The edit toolbar has a button for this.

Similarly to HTML, in TeX extra spaces and newlines are ignored.

The TeX code has to be put literally: MediaWiki templates, predefined templates, and parameters cannot be used within math tags: pairs of double braces are ignored and "#" gives an error message. However, math tags work in the then and else part of #if, etc. See m:Template:Demo of attempt to use parameters within TeX (backlinks, edit).

Rendering

The PNG images are black on white (not transparent). These colors, as well as font sizes and types, are independent of browser settings or CSS. Font sizes and types will often deviate from what HTML renders. Vertical alignment with the surrounding text can also be a problem. The css selector of the images is img.tex.

It should be pointed out that most of these shortcomings have been addressed by Maynard Handley, but have not been released yet.

The alt attribute of the PNG images (the text that is displayed if your browser can't display images; Internet Explorer shows it up in the hover box) is the wikitext that produced them, excluding the <math> and </math>.

Apart from function and operator names, as is customary in mathematics for variables, letters are in italics; digits are not. For other text, (like variable labels) to avoid being rendered in italics like variables, use \mbox or \mathrm. For example, <math>\mbox{abc}</math> gives abc.

TeX vs HTML

Before introducing TeX markup for producing special characters, it should be noted that, as this comparison table shows, sometimes similar results can be achieved in HTML (see Help:Special characters).

TeX Syntax (forcing PNG)	TeX Rendering	HTML Syntax	HTML Rendering
<math>\alpha\,</math>		&alpha;	α
<math>\sqrt{2}</math>		&radic;2	√2
<math>\sqrt{1-e^2}</math>		&radic;(1&minus;''e''&sup2;)	√(1−e²)

The use of HTML instead of TeX is still under discussion. The arguments either way can be summarised as follows.

Pros of HTML

• In-line HTML formulae always align properly with the rest of the HTML text.
• The formula's background, font size and face match the rest of HTML contents and the appearance respects CSS and browser settings.
• Pages using HTML will load faster.

Pros of TeX

• TeX is semantically superior to HTML. In TeX, "<math>x</math>" means "mathematical variable x", whereas in HTML "x" could mean anything. Information has been irrevocably lost. This has multiple benefits:
  1. TeX can be transformed into HTML, but not vice-versa. This means that on the server side we can always transform a formula, based on its complexity and location within the text, user preferences, type of browser, etc. Therefore, where possible, all the benefits of HTML can be retained, together with the benefits of TeX. It's true that the current situation is not ideal, but that's not a good reason to drop information/contents. It's more a reason to help improve the situation.
  2. TeX can be converted to MathML for browsers which support it, thus keeping its semantics and allowing it to be rendered as a vector.
• TeX has been specifically designed for typesetting formulae, so input is easier and more natural, and output is more aesthetically pleasing.
• When writing in TeX, editors need not worry about browser support, since it is rendered into an image by the server. HTML formulae, on the other hand, can end up being rendered inconsistent of editor's intentions (or not at all), by some browsers or older versions of a browser.

Functions, symbols, special characters

Accents/Diacritics
\acute{a} \grave{a} \hat{a} \tilde{a} \breve{a}
\check{a} \bar{a} \ddot{a} \dot{a}
Standard functions
\sin a \cos b \tan c
\sec d \csc e \cot f
\arcsin h \arccos i \arctan j
\sinh k \cosh l \tanh m \coth n
\operatorname{sh}o \operatorname{ch}p \operatorname{th}q
\operatorname{argsh}r \operatorname{argch}s \operatorname{argth}t
\lim u \limsup v \liminf w \min x \max y
\inf z \sup a \exp b \ln c \lg d \log e \log_{10} f \ker g
\deg h \gcd i \Pr j \det k \hom l \arg m \dim n
Modular arithmetic
s_k \equiv 0 \pmod{m} a \bmod b
Derivatives
\nabla \partial x dx \dot x \ddot y
Sets
\forall \exists \empty \emptyset \varnothing
\in \ni \not \in \notin \subset \subseteq \subsetneq \supset \supseteq \supsetneq
\cap \bigcap \cup \bigcup \biguplus \setminus \smallsetminus
\sqsubset \sqsubseteq \sqsupset \sqsupseteq \sqcap \sqcup \bigsqcup
Operators
+ \oplus \bigoplus \pm \mp -
\times \otimes \bigotimes \cdot \circ \bullet \bigodot
\star * / \div \frac{1}{2}
Logic
\land \wedge \bigwedge \bar{q} \to p
\lor \vee \bigvee \lnot \neg q \And
Root
\sqrt{2} \sqrt[n]{x}
Relations
\sim \approx \simeq \cong \dot= \overset{\underset{\mathrm{def}}{}}{=}
\le < \ll \gg \ge > \equiv \not\equiv \ne \mbox{or} \neq \propto
Geometric
\Diamond \Box \triangle \angle \perp \mid \nmid \| 45^\circ
Arrows
\leftarrow \gets \rightarrow \to \not\to \leftrightarrow \longleftarrow \longrightarrow
\mapsto \longmapsto \hookrightarrow \hookleftarrow \nearrow \searrow \swarrow \nwarrow
\uparrow \downarrow \updownarrow \rightharpoonup \rightharpoondown \leftharpoonup \leftharpoondown \upharpoonleft
\upharpoonright \downharpoonleft \downharpoonright \rightleftharpoons \Leftarrow \Rightarrow \Leftrightarrow \Longleftarrow
\Longrightarrow \Longleftrightarrow (or \iff) \Uparrow \Downarrow \Updownarrow \leftleftarrows \leftrightarrows \Lleftarrow \leftarrowtail \looparrowleft
\leftrightharpoons \curvearrowleft \circlearrowleft \Lsh \upuparrows \rightrightarrows \rightleftarrows \Rrightarrow \rightarrowtail \looparrowright
\curvearrowright \circlearrowright \Rsh \downdownarrows \multimap \leftrightsquigarrow \rightsquigarrow \nLeftarrow \nleftrightarrow \nRightarrow
\nLeftrightarrow \longleftrightarrow
Special
\eth \S \P \% \dagger \ddagger \ldots \cdots
\smile \frown \wr \triangleleft \triangleright \infty \bot \top
\vdash \vDash \Vdash \models \lVert \rVert \imath \hbar
\ell \mho \Finv \Re \Im \wp \complement \diamondsuit
\heartsuit \clubsuit \spadesuit \Game \flat \natural \sharp
Unsorted (new stuff)
\vartriangle \triangledown \lozenge \circledS \measuredangle \nexists \Bbbk \backprime \blacktriangle \blacktriangledown
\blacksquare \blacklozenge \bigstar \sphericalangle \diagup \diagdown \dotplus \Cap \Cup \barwedge
\veebar \doublebarwedge \boxminus \boxtimes \boxdot \boxplus \divideontimes \ltimes \rtimes \leftthreetimes
\rightthreetimes \curlywedge \curlyvee \circleddash \circledast \circledcirc \centerdot \intercal \leqq \leqslant
\eqslantless \lessapprox \approxeq \lessdot \lll \lessgtr \lesseqgtr \lesseqqgtr \doteqdot \risingdotseq
\fallingdotseq \backsim \backsimeq \subseteqq \Subset \preccurlyeq \curlyeqprec \precsim \precapprox \vartriangleleft
\Vvdash \bumpeq \Bumpeq \geqq \geqslant \eqslantgtr \gtrsim \gtrapprox \eqsim \gtrdot
\ggg \gtrless \gtreqless \gtreqqless \eqcirc \circeq \triangleq \thicksim \thickapprox \supseteqq
\Supset \succcurlyeq \curlyeqsucc \succsim \succapprox \vartriangleright \shortmid \shortparallel \between \pitchfork
\varpropto \blacktriangleleft \therefore \backepsilon \blacktriangleright \because \nleqslant \nleqq \lneq \lneqq
\lvertneqq \lnsim \lnapprox \nprec \npreceq \precneqq \precnsim \precnapprox \nsim \nshortmid
\nvdash \nVdash \ntriangleleft \ntrianglelefteq \nsubseteq \nsubseteqq \varsubsetneq \subsetneqq \varsubsetneqq \ngtr
\ngeqslant \ngeqq \gneq \gneqq \gvertneqq \gnsim \gnapprox \nsucc \nsucceq \succneqq
\succnsim \succnapprox \ncong \nshortparallel \nparallel \nvDash \nVDash \ntriangleright \ntrianglerighteq \nsupseteq
\nsupseteqq \varsupsetneq \supsetneqq \varsupsetneqq
\jmath \surd \ast \uplus \diamond \bigtriangleup \bigtriangledown \ominus
\oslash \odot \bigcirc \amalg \prec \succ \preceq \succeq
\dashv \asymp \doteq \parallel

Subscripts, superscripts, integrals

Feature	Syntax	How it looks rendered
		HTML	PNG
Superscript	a^2	a2
Subscript	a_2	a2
Grouping	a^{2+2}	a2 + 2
	a_{i,j}	ai,j
Combining sub & super	x_2^3
Preceding and/or Additional sub & super	\sideset{_1^2}{_3^4}\prod_a^b
	{}_1^2\!\Omega_3^4
Stacking	\overset{\alpha}{\omega}
	\underset{\alpha}{\omega}
	\overset{\alpha}{\underset{\gamma}{\omega}}
	\stackrel{\alpha}{\omega}
Derivative (forced PNG)	x', y'', f', f''\!
Derivative (f in italics may overlap primes in HTML)	x', y'', f', f''	x',y'',f',f''
Derivative (wrong in HTML)	x^\prime, y^{\prime\prime}
Derivative (wrong in PNG)	x\prime, y\prime\prime
Derivative dots	\dot{x}, \ddot{x}
Underlines, overlines, vectors	\hat a \ \bar b \ \vec c
	\overrightarrow{a b} \ \overleftarrow{c d} \ \widehat{d e f}
	\overline{g h i} \ \underline{j k l}
Arrows	A \xleftarrow{n+\mu-1} B \xrightarrow[T]{n\pm i-1} C
Overbraces	\overbrace{ 1+2+\cdots+100 }^{5050}
Underbraces	\underbrace{ a+b+\cdots+z }_{26}
Sum	\sum_{k=1}^N k^2
Sum (force \textstyle)	\textstyle \sum_{k=1}^N k^2
Product	\prod_{i=1}^N x_i
Product (force \textstyle)	\textstyle \prod_{i=1}^N x_i
Coproduct	\coprod_{i=1}^N x_i
Coproduct (force \textstyle)	\textstyle \coprod_{i=1}^N x_i
Limit	\lim_{n \to \infty}x_n
Limit (force \textstyle)	\textstyle \lim_{n \to \infty}x_n
Integral	\int_{-N}^{N} e^x\, dx
Integral (force \textstyle)	\textstyle \int_{-N}^{N} e^x\, dx
Double integral	\iint_{D}^{W} \, dx\,dy
Triple integral	\iiint_{E}^{V} \, dx\,dy\,dz
Quadruple integral	\iiiint_{F}^{U} \, dx\,dy\,dz\,dt
Path integral	\oint_{C} x^3\, dx + 4y^2\, dy
Intersections	\bigcap_1^{n} p
Unions	\bigcup_1^{k} p

Fractions, matrices, multilines

Feature	Syntax	How it looks rendered
Fractions	\frac{2}{4}=0.5
Small Fractions	\tfrac{2}{4} = 0.5
Large (normal) Fractions	\dfrac{2}{4} = 0.5
Large (nestled) Fractions	\cfrac{2}{c + \cfrac{2}{d + \cfrac{2}{4}}} = a
Binomial coefficients	\binom{n}{k}
Small Binomial coefficients	\tbinom{n}{k}
Large (normal) Binomial coefficients	\dbinom{n}{k}
Matrices	\begin{matrix} x & y \\ z & v \end{matrix}
	\begin{vmatrix} x & y \\ z & v \end{vmatrix}
	\begin{Vmatrix} x & y \\ z & v \end{Vmatrix}
	\begin{bmatrix} 0 & \cdots & 0 \\ \vdots & \ddots & \vdots \\ 0 & \cdots & 0 \end{bmatrix}
	\begin{Bmatrix} x & y \\ z & v \end{Bmatrix}
	\begin{pmatrix} x & y \\ z & v \end{pmatrix}
	\bigl( \begin{smallmatrix} a&b\\ c&d \end{smallmatrix} \bigr)
Case distinctions	f(n) = \begin{cases} n/2, & \mbox{if }n\mbox{ is even} \\ 3n+1, & \mbox{if }n\mbox{ is odd} \end{cases}
Multiline equations	\begin{align} f(x) & = (a+b)^2 \\ & = a^2+2ab+b^2 \\ \end{align}
	\begin{alignat}{2} f(x) & = (a-b)^2 \\ & = a^2-2ab+b^2 \\ \end{alignat}
Multiline equations (must define number of colums used ({lcr}) (should not be used unless needed)	\begin{array}{lcl} z & = & a \\ f(x,y,z) & = & x + y + z \end{array}
Multiline equations (more)	\begin{array}{lcr} z & = & a \\ f(x,y,z) & = & x + y + z \end{array}
Breaking up a long expression so that it wraps when necessary	<math>f(x) \,\!</math> <math>= \sum_{n=0}^\infty a_n x^n </math> <math>= a_0+a_1x+a_2x^2+\cdots</math>
Simultaneous equations	\begin{cases} 3x + 5y + z \\ 7x - 2y + 4z \\ -6x + 3y + 2z \end{cases}

Alphabets and typefaces

Greek alphabet
\Alpha \Beta \Gamma \Delta \Epsilon \Zeta
\Eta \Theta \Iota \Kappa \Lambda \Mu
\Nu \Xi \Pi \Rho \Sigma \Tau
\Upsilon \Phi \Chi \Psi \Omega
\alpha \beta \gamma \delta \epsilon \zeta
\eta \theta \iota \kappa \lambda \mu
\nu \xi \pi \rho \sigma \tau
\upsilon \phi \chi \psi \omega
\varepsilon \digamma \vartheta \varkappa
\varpi \varrho \varsigma \varphi
Blackboard Bold/Scripts
\mathbb{A} \mathbb{B} \mathbb{C} \mathbb{D} \mathbb{E} \mathbb{F} \mathbb{G}
\mathbb{H} \mathbb{I} \mathbb{J} \mathbb{K} \mathbb{L} \mathbb{M}
\mathbb{N} \mathbb{O} \mathbb{P} \mathbb{Q} \mathbb{R} \mathbb{S} \mathbb{T}
\mathbb{U} \mathbb{V} \mathbb{W} \mathbb{X} \mathbb{Y} \mathbb{Z}
boldface (vectors)
\mathbf{A} \mathbf{B} \mathbf{C} \mathbf{D} \mathbf{E} \mathbf{F} \mathbf{G}
\mathbf{H} \mathbf{I} \mathbf{J} \mathbf{K} \mathbf{L} \mathbf{M}
\mathbf{N} \mathbf{O} \mathbf{P} \mathbf{Q} \mathbf{R} \mathbf{S} \mathbf{T}
\mathbf{U} \mathbf{V} \mathbf{W} \mathbf{X} \mathbf{Y} \mathbf{Z}
\mathbf{a} \mathbf{b} \mathbf{c} \mathbf{d} \mathbf{e} \mathbf{f} \mathbf{g}
\mathbf{h} \mathbf{i} \mathbf{j} \mathbf{k} \mathbf{l} \mathbf{m}
\mathbf{n} \mathbf{o} \mathbf{p} \mathbf{q} \mathbf{r} \mathbf{s} \mathbf{t}
\mathbf{u} \mathbf{v} \mathbf{w} \mathbf{x} \mathbf{y} \mathbf{z}
\mathbf{0} \mathbf{1} \mathbf{2} \mathbf{3} \mathbf{4}
\mathbf{5} \mathbf{6} \mathbf{7} \mathbf{8} \mathbf{9}
Boldface (greek)
\boldsymbol{\Alpha} \boldsymbol{\Beta} \boldsymbol{\Gamma} \boldsymbol{\Delta} \boldsymbol{\Epsilon} \boldsymbol{\Zeta}
\boldsymbol{\Eta} \boldsymbol{\Theta} \boldsymbol{\Iota} \boldsymbol{\Kappa} \boldsymbol{\Lambda} \boldsymbol{\Mu}
\boldsymbol{\Nu} \boldsymbol{\Xi} \boldsymbol{\Pi} \boldsymbol{\Rho} \boldsymbol{\Sigma} \boldsymbol{\Tau}
\boldsymbol{\Upsilon} \boldsymbol{\Phi} \boldsymbol{\Chi} \boldsymbol{\Psi} \boldsymbol{\Omega}
\boldsymbol{\alpha} \boldsymbol{\beta} \boldsymbol{\gamma} \boldsymbol{\delta} \boldsymbol{\epsilon} \boldsymbol{\zeta}
\boldsymbol{\eta} \boldsymbol{\theta} \boldsymbol{\iota} \boldsymbol{\kappa} \boldsymbol{\lambda} \boldsymbol{\mu}
\boldsymbol{\nu} \boldsymbol{\xi} \boldsymbol{\pi} \boldsymbol{\rho} \boldsymbol{\sigma} \boldsymbol{\tau}
\boldsymbol{\upsilon} \boldsymbol{\phi} \boldsymbol{\chi} \boldsymbol{\psi} \boldsymbol{\omega}
\boldsymbol{\varepsilon} \boldsymbol{\digamma} \boldsymbol{\vartheta} \boldsymbol{\varkappa}
\boldsymbol{\varpi} \boldsymbol{\varrho} \boldsymbol{\varsigma} \boldsymbol{\varphi}
Italics
\mathit{A} \mathit{B} \mathit{C} \mathit{D} \mathit{E} \mathit{F} \mathit{G}
\mathit{H} \mathit{I} \mathit{J} \mathit{K} \mathit{L} \mathit{M}
\mathit{N} \mathit{O} \mathit{P} \mathit{Q} \mathit{R} \mathit{S} \mathit{T}
\mathit{U} \mathit{V} \mathit{W} \mathit{X} \mathit{Y} \mathit{Z}
\mathit{a} \mathit{b} \mathit{c} \mathit{d} \mathit{e} \mathit{f} \mathit{g}
\mathit{h} \mathit{i} \mathit{j} \mathit{k} \mathit{l} \mathit{m}
\mathit{n} \mathit{o} \mathit{p} \mathit{q} \mathit{r} \mathit{s} \mathit{t}
\mathit{u} \mathit{v} \mathit{w} \mathit{x} \mathit{y} \mathit{z}
\mathit{0} \mathit{1} \mathit{2} \mathit{3} \mathit{4}
\mathit{5} \mathit{6} \mathit{7} \mathit{8} \mathit{9}
Roman typeface
\mathrm{A} \mathrm{B} \mathrm{C} \mathrm{D} \mathrm{E} \mathrm{F} \mathrm{G}
\mathrm{H} \mathrm{I} \mathrm{J} \mathrm{K} \mathrm{L} \mathrm{M}
\mathrm{N} \mathrm{O} \mathrm{P} \mathrm{Q} \mathrm{R} \mathrm{S} \mathrm{T}
\mathrm{U} \mathrm{V} \mathrm{W} \mathrm{X} \mathrm{Y} \mathrm{Z}
\mathrm{a} \mathrm{b} \mathrm{c} \mathrm{d} \mathrm{e} \mathrm{f} \mathrm{g}
\mathrm{h} \mathrm{i} \mathrm{j} \mathrm{k} \mathrm{l} \mathrm{m}
\mathrm{n} \mathrm{o} \mathrm{p} \mathrm{q} \mathrm{r} \mathrm{s} \mathrm{t}
\mathrm{u} \mathrm{v} \mathrm{w} \mathrm{x} \mathrm{y} \mathrm{z}
\mathrm{0} \mathrm{1} \mathrm{2} \mathrm{3} \mathrm{4}
\mathrm{5} \mathrm{6} \mathrm{7} \mathrm{8} \mathrm{9}
Fraktur typeface
\mathfrak{A} \mathfrak{B} \mathfrak{C} \mathfrak{D} \mathfrak{E} \mathfrak{F} \mathfrak{G}
\mathfrak{H} \mathfrak{I} \mathfrak{J} \mathfrak{K} \mathfrak{L} \mathfrak{M}
\mathfrak{N} \mathfrak{O} \mathfrak{P} \mathfrak{Q} \mathfrak{R} \mathfrak{S} \mathfrak{T}
\mathfrak{U} \mathfrak{V} \mathfrak{W} \mathfrak{X} \mathfrak{Y} \mathfrak{Z}
\mathfrak{a} \mathfrak{b} \mathfrak{c} \mathfrak{d} \mathfrak{e} \mathfrak{f} \mathfrak{g}
\mathfrak{h} \mathfrak{i} \mathfrak{j} \mathfrak{k} \mathfrak{l} \mathfrak{m}
\mathfrak{n} \mathfrak{o} \mathfrak{p} \mathfrak{q} \mathfrak{r} \mathfrak{s} \mathfrak{t}
\mathfrak{u} \mathfrak{v} \mathfrak{w} \mathfrak{x} \mathfrak{y} \mathfrak{z}
\mathfrak{0} \mathfrak{1} \mathfrak{2} \mathfrak{3} \mathfrak{4}
\mathfrak{5} \mathfrak{6} \mathfrak{7} \mathfrak{8} \mathfrak{9}
Calligraphy/Script
\mathcal{A} \mathcal{B} \mathcal{C} \mathcal{D} \mathcal{E} \mathcal{F} \mathcal{G}
\mathcal{H} \mathcal{I} \mathcal{J} \mathcal{K} \mathcal{L} \mathcal{M}
\mathcal{N} \mathcal{O} \mathcal{P} \mathcal{Q} \mathcal{R} \mathcal{S} \mathcal{T}
\mathcal{U} \mathcal{V} \mathcal{W} \mathcal{X} \mathcal{Y} \mathcal{Z}
Hebrew
\aleph \beth \gimel \daleth

Feature	Syntax	How it looks rendered
non-italicised characters	\mbox{abc}	abc
mixed italics (bad)	\mbox{if} n \mbox{is even}	ifnis even
mixed italics (good)	\mbox{if }n\mbox{ is even}	if n is even
mixed italics (more legible: ~ is a non-breaking space, while "\ " forces a space)	\mbox{if}~n\ \mbox{is even}

Parenthesizing big expressions, brackets, bars

Feature	Syntax	How it looks rendered
Bad	( \frac{1}{2} )
Good	\left ( \frac{1}{2} \right )

You can use various delimiters with \left and \right:

Feature	Syntax	How it looks rendered
Parentheses	\left ( \frac{a}{b} \right )
Brackets	\left [ \frac{a}{b} \right ] \quad \left \lbrack \frac{a}{b} \right \rbrack
Braces	\left \{ \frac{a}{b} \right \} \quad \left \lbrace \frac{a}{b} \right \rbrace
Angle brackets	\left \langle \frac{a}{b} \right \rangle
Bars and double bars	\left | \frac{a}{b} \right \vert \left \Vert \frac{c}{d} \right \|
Floor and ceiling functions:	\left \lfloor \frac{a}{b} \right \rfloor \left \lceil \frac{c}{d} \right \rceil
Slashes and backslashes	\left / \frac{a}{b} \right \backslash
Up, down and up-down arrows	\left \uparrow \frac{a}{b} \right \downarrow \quad \left \Uparrow \frac{a}{b} \right \Downarrow \quad \left \updownarrow \frac{a}{b} \right \Updownarrow
Delimiters can be mixed, as long as \left and \right match	\left [ 0,1 \right ) \left \langle \psi \right |
Use \left. and \right. if you don't want a delimiter to appear:	\left . \frac{A}{B} \right \} \to X
Size of the delimiters	\big( \Big( \bigg( \Bigg( ... \Bigg] \bigg] \Big] \big]
	\big\{ \Big\{ \bigg\{ \Bigg\{ ... \Bigg\rangle \bigg\rangle \Big\rangle \big\rangle
	\big\| \Big\| \bigg\| \Bigg\| ... \Bigg| \bigg| \Big| \big|
	\big\lfloor \Big\lfloor \bigg\lfloor \Bigg\lfloor ... \Bigg\rceil \bigg\rceil \Big\rceil \big\rceil
	\big\uparrow \Big\uparrow \bigg\uparrow \Bigg\uparrow ... \Bigg\Downarrow \bigg\Downarrow \Big\Downarrow \big\Downarrow
	\big\updownarrow \Big\updownarrow \bigg\updownarrow \Bigg\updownarrow ... \Bigg\Updownarrow \bigg\Updownarrow \Big\Updownarrow \big\Updownarrow
	\big / \Big / \bigg / \Bigg / ... \Bigg\backslash \bigg\backslash \Big\backslash \big\backslash

Spacing

Note that TeX handles most spacing automatically, but you may sometimes want manual control.

Feature	Syntax	How it looks rendered
double quad space	a \qquad b
quad space	a \quad b
text space	a\ b
text space without PNG conversion	a \mbox{ } b	a b
large space	a\;b
medium space	a\>b	[not supported]
small space	a\,b
no space	ab
small negative space	a\!b

Align with normal text flow

Due to the default css

img.tex { vertical-align: middle; }

an inline expression like should look good.

If you need to align it otherwise, use <font style="vertical-align:-100%;"><math>...</math></font> and play with the vertical-align argument until you get it right; however, how it looks may depend on the browser and the browser settings.

Also note that if you rely on this workaround, if/when the rendering on the server gets fixed in future releases, as a result of this extra manual offset your formulae will suddenly be aligned incorrectly. So use it sparingly, if at all.

Forced PNG rendering

To force the formula to render as PNG, add \, (small space) at the end of the formula (where it is not rendered). This will force PNG if the user is in "HTML if simple" mode, but not for "HTML if possible" mode (math rendering settings in preferences).

You can also use \,\! (small space and negative space, which cancel out) anywhere inside the math tags. This does force PNG even in "HTML if possible" mode, unlike \,.

This could be useful to keep the rendering of formulae in a proof consistent, for example, or to fix formulae that render incorrectly in HTML (at one time, a^{2+2} rendered with an extra underscore), or to demonstrate how something is rendered when it would normally show up as HTML (as in the examples above).

For instance:

Syntax	How it looks rendered
a^{c+2}	ac + 2
a^{c+2} \,
a^{\,\!c+2}
a^{b^{c+2}}	(WRONG with option "HTML if possible or else PNG"!)
a^{b^{c+2}} \,	(WRONG with option "HTML if possible or else PNG"!)
a^{b^{c+2}}\approx 5	(due to "" correctly displayed, no code "\,\!" needed)
a^{b^{\,\!c+2}}
\int_{-N}^{N} e^x\, dx

This has been tested with most of the formulae on this page, and seems to work perfectly.

You might want to include a comment in the HTML so people don't "correct" the formula by removing it:

<!-- The \,\! is to keep the formula rendered as PNG instead of HTML. Please don't remove it.-->

Color

Equations can use color:

• {\color{Blue}x^2}+{\color{Brown}2x}-{\color{OliveGreen}1}

  

• x_{1,2}=\frac{-b\pm\sqrt{\color{Red}b^2-4ac}}{2a}

  

See here for all named colours supported by LaTeX.

Note that color should not be used as the only way to identify something because color blind people may not be able to distinguish between the two colors. See Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Formatting issues.

Examples

ax2 + bx + c = 0

<math>ax^2 + bx + c = 0</math>

<math>ax^2 + bx + c = 0\,\!</math>

<math>x=\frac{-b\pm\sqrt{b^2-4ac}}{2a}</math>

<math>2 = \left(
 \frac{\left(3-x\right) \times 2}{3-x}
 \right)</math>

<math>S_{new} = S_{old} +
 \frac{ \left( 5-T \right) ^2} {2}</math>

<math>\int_a^x \int_a^s f(y)\,dy\,ds
 = \int_a^x f(y)(x-y)\,dy</math>

<math>\sum_{m=1}^\infty\sum_{n=1}^\infty\frac{m^2\,n}
 {3^m\left(m\,3^n+n\,3^m\right)}</math>

<math>u'' + p(x)u' + q(x)u=f(x),\quad x>a</math>

<math>|\bar{z}| = |z|,
 |(\bar{z})^n| = |z|^n,
 \arg(z^n) = n \arg(z)</math>

<math>\lim_{z\rightarrow z_0} f(z)=f(z_0)</math>

<math>\phi_n(\kappa) =
 \frac{1}{4\pi^2\kappa^2} \int_0^\infty
 \frac{\sin(\kappa R)}{\kappa R}
 \frac{\partial}{\partial R}
 \left[R^2\frac{\partial D_n(R)}{\partial R}\right]\,dR</math>

<math>\phi_n(\kappa) = 
 0.033C_n^2\kappa^{-11/3},\quad
 \frac{1}{L_0}\ll\kappa\ll\frac{1}{l_0}</math>

<math>
 f(x) =
 \begin{cases}
 1 & -1 \le x < 0 \\
 \frac{1}{2} & x = 0 \\
 1 - x^2 & 0 < x\le 1
 \end{cases}
 </math>

 <math>{}_pF_q(a_1,\dots,a_p;c_1,\dots,c_q;z)
 = \sum_{n=0}^\infty
 \frac{(a_1)_n\cdot\cdot\cdot(a_p)_n}{(c_1)_n\cdot\cdot\cdot(c_q)_n}
 \frac{z^n}{n!}</math>

Bug reports

Discussions, bug reports and feature requests should go to the Wikitech-l mailing list. These can also be filed on Mediazilla under MediaWiki extensions.

See also

• Typesetting of mathematical formulas
• Proposed m:GNU LilyPond support
• Table of mathematical symbols
• m:Blahtex, or blahtex: a LaTeX to MathML converter for Wikipedia
• General help for editing a Wiki page

External links

• A LaTeX tutorial. http://www.maths.tcd.ie/~dwilkins/LaTeXPrimer/
• A PDF document introducing TeX -- see page 39 onwards for a good introduction to the maths side of things: http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/gentle/gentle.pdf
• A PDF document introducing LaTeX -- skip to page 59 for the math section. See page 72 for a complete reference list of symbols included in LaTeX and AMS-LaTeX. http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf
• TeX reference card: http://www.csit.fsu.edu/docs/tex/tex-refcard-letter.pdf
• http://www.ams.org/tex/amslatex.html
• A set of public domain fixed-size math symbol bitmaps: http://us.metamath.org/symbols/symbols.html
• MathML - A product of the W3C Math working group, is a low-level specification for describing mathematics as a basis for machine to machine communication. http://www.w3.org/Math/

Wikipedia-specific help

If there are special features with respect to TeX on Wikipedia please add them here, e.g. system messages or skins / scripts working only on Wikipedia.

This page is a copy of the master help page at Meta (for general help information all Wikimedia projects can use), with two Wikipedia-specific templates inserted. To update the main text, edit the master help page for all projects at m:Help:Displaying a formula. For Wikipedia-specific issues, use Template:Ph:Displaying a formula (the extra text at the bottom of this page) or Template:Phh:Displaying a formula for a Wikipedia-specific lead (text appears at the top of this page). You are welcome to replace the full wikitext of this page with that of the master page at Meta at any time. To view this page in other languages see the master page at Meta.