LaTeX Equations¶

papersmith converts LaTeX math expressions into native Office MathML (OMML), which renders as editable equations inside Microsoft Word.

Inline Equations¶

Wrap LaTeX in single dollar signs within add_text():

doc.add_text("Einstein's equation is $E = mc^2$ and it changed physics.")
doc.add_text("The integral $\\int_0^\\infty e^{-x} dx = 1$ converges.")

Display Equations¶

Use add_equation() for centered, standalone equations:

doc.add_equation(r"F = G \frac{m_1 m_2}{r^2}")
doc.add_equation(r"\sum_{n=1}^{\infty} \frac{1}{n^2} = \frac{\pi^2}{6}")
doc.add_equation(r"\nabla \times \mathbf{E} = -\frac{\partial \mathbf{B}}{\partial t}")

Note

Display equations are automatically centered. Do not include $ delimiters in add_equation().

How It Works¶

papersmith uses a three-stage pipeline:

graph LR
    A[LaTeX String] --> B[MathML]
    B --> C[OMML via XSLT]
    C --> D[Word Document]

LaTeX → MathML: Uses latex2mathml to parse the expression
MathML → OMML: Applies an XSLT transform (bundled or from Office)
OMML → Document: Inserts the native Office math XML into the paragraph

Supported LaTeX¶

Most standard math constructs are supported:

Category	Examples
Fractions	`\frac{a}{b}`
Subscripts/Superscripts	`x_i`, `x^2`, `x_i^2`
Greek letters	`\alpha`, `\beta`, `\gamma`, `\Omega`
Operators	`\sum`, `\prod`, `\int`, `\lim`
Roots	`\sqrt{x}`, `\sqrt[3]{x}`
Matrices	`\begin{pmatrix} a & b \\ c & d \end{pmatrix}`
Decorations	`\hat{x}`, `\bar{x}`, `\vec{v}`, `\dot{x}`
Delimiters	`\left(`, `\right)`, `\left[`, `\right]`

Fallback Behavior¶

If a LaTeX expression fails to render (e.g., unsupported syntax), papersmith inserts it as italic plain text with a warning:

[Equation: \unsupported_command]