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I am using the package sfmath. It is rather hard to explain why, but the reason should not matter for my question. If it is required I can try to explain why I need sfmath. Nevertheless, the main message is that it can not be turned off.

Although I am using sfmath, I do would like to use the typical "a" in the mathmode of amsmath. How can I achieve this?

Is it possible to change the font style for single words/letter such that I, per command, can change the font style locally when required?

For illustration purposes a simple working example looks like this:

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage{sfmath}
\usepackage{amsmath}

\begin{document}

\begin{equation}
 a = a
\end{equation}

\end{document}

sfmath seems to be overruling amsmath as it does not produce the "a" that I would like. The code above results in:

enter image description here

Whereas the lower "a = a" is obtained by turning off sfmath in order to illustrate the "a" that I would like to include.

Thank you very much!

The Dude
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  • Does http://tex.stackexchange.com/q/42394/39222 help? – cfr Jun 22 '14 at 15:28
  • Yes and no, I mean it does allow me to locally change the font. However it does not result in the required "a" which amsmath produces. I am not sure how to alter the answer of the link you gave me to my specific case. – The Dude Jun 24 '14 at 15:05
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    In that case, please provide a small but complete document illustrating the issue to encourage people to help you and to help them understand your situation. (This is known locally as a 'Minimal Working Example' and should begin with \documentclass and end with \end{document}.) – cfr Jun 24 '14 at 21:13
  • I am not sure how to include a image of the pdf I am producing. I guess my "hack" will suffice. – The Dude Jun 25 '14 at 09:36
  • There may be some confusion over terminology: While sfmath is a package that provides a certain sans-serif font for math mode, this is not the purpose of amsmath. The macros and environments of the amsmath package are compatible with all sorts of font families, including those provided by sfmath. Thus, it doesn't make much sense to say that amsmath overrules sfmath, or vice versa. Are you really looking to use the serif-style a of either Computer Modern Roman or Computer Modern math italics instead of the sans-serif a that's activated when sfmath is loaded? – Mico Jun 25 '14 at 09:38
  • Sorry, but I can't understand what you'd like to achieve. Do you want that all a's in math mode are in normal math italic? – egreg Jun 25 '14 at 09:38
  • What I want to achieve is the following: while sfmath is active I want to use the font of sfmath. However I want to locally be able to use the "a" as produced by amsmath (lower "a" in the figure included). – The Dude Jun 25 '14 at 10:02
  • @TheDude - The issue is that amsmath does not "produce", or otherwise make available, any particular font. – Mico Jun 25 '14 at 13:03
  • @Mico, amsmath left aside. How can I locally change the font of my "a" to the one at the bottom of the included image? – The Dude Jun 25 '14 at 14:24

2 Answers2

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Well you either can define a mathcommand that switches to the standard font:

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage{sfmath}
\usepackage{amsmath}
\DeclareSymbolFontAlphabet{\mathori}    {letters}
\begin{document}

\begin{equation}
 a = \mathori{a}
\end{equation}

\end{document}

You can also reset the font for the "a" back to "normal" (this doesn't work "locally"):

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage{sfmath}
\usepackage{amsmath}
\DeclareMathSymbol{a}{\mathalpha}{letters}{`a}
\begin{document}

\begin{equation}
 a = a
\end{equation}

\end{document}
Ulrike Fischer
  • 327,261
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From the comments in sfmath.sty:

% After including the package sfmath.sty, all maths of the current
% document is displayed with sans serif fonts; there is no way to
% switch back to the original behavior.

The style works by overwriting all the standard math font commands, and so does not leave access to the original math fonts. Those fonts are computer modern or latin modern by default. As many have pointed out in comments, amsmath is not a font changing package, it has a close cousin amsfonts which is, but it mostly provides extra symbols on top of the computer modern ones.

A package that will provide you with a form of sans serif math and allow switching is sansmath. Here is a small sample:

Sample output

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage{sansmath}

\begin{document}

\begin{equation}
  a = a \ne \mathsf{a}
\end{equation}

\begin{sansmath}
  \begin{equation}
    a = a \ne \mathsf{a} \ne \mathit{a}
  \end{equation}
\end{sansmath}

\end{document}

Note how you can use \mathit to get the standard a.

You should also look at this discussion: Typeset mathematical symbols also in sans serif font?

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Andrew Swann
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