6 LaTeX usage

Asymptote comes with a convenient LaTeX style file asymptote.sty that makes LaTeX Asymptote-aware. Entering Asymptote code directly into the LaTeX source file, at the point where it is needed, keeps figures organized and avoids the need to invent new file names for each figure. Simply add the line \usepackage{asymptote} at the beginning of your file and enclose your Asymptote code within a \begin{asy}...\end{asy} environment. As with the LaTeX comment environment, the \end{asy} command must appear on a line by itself, with no leading spaces or trailing commands/comments.

The sample LaTeX file below, named latexusage.tex, can be run as follows:

latex latexusage
asy latexusage
latex latexusage

If the [inline] package option is given to asymptote.sty, inline LaTeX code is generated instead of EPS files. This makes LaTeX symbols visible to the \begin{asy}...\end{asy} environment. In this mode, Asymptote correctly aligns LaTeX symbols defined outside of \begin{asy}...\end{asy}, but treats their size as zero; an optional second string can be given to Label to provide an estimate of the unknown label size. Note that labels might not show up in DVI viewers that cannot handle raw PostScript code; use dvips/dvipdf to produce PostScript/PDF output. We recommend using the modified version of dvipdf in the Asymptote patches directory, which accepts the dvips -z hyperdvi option.

An excellent tutorial by Dario Teixeira on integrating Asymptote and LaTeX is available at http://dario.dse.nl/projects/asylatex/.

Here now is latexusage.tex:

\documentclass[12pt]{article}

% Use this form to include eps files:
\usepackage{asymptote}

% Use this form to include inline LaTeX code.
%\usepackage[inline]{asymptote}

% Enable this line to produce pdf hyperlinks
%\usepackage[hypertex]{hyperref}

\begin{document}
\begin{asydef}
// Global definitions can be put here.
\end{asydef}

Here is a venn diagram
%(Figure~\ref{venn})
produced with Asymptote, drawn to width 5cm:

\def\A{A}
\def\B{B}

%\begin{figure}
\begin{center}
\begin{asy}
size(5cm,0);
pen colour1=red;
pen colour2=green;

pair z0=(0,0);
pair z1=(-1,0);
pair z2=(1,0);
real r=1.5;
guide c1=circle(z1,r);
guide c2=circle(z2,r);
fill(c1,colour1);
fill(c2,colour2);

picture intersection=new picture;
fill(intersection,c1,colour1+colour2);
clip(intersection,c2);

add(intersection);

draw(c1);
draw(c2);

//box(Label("$\A$",z1));              // Requires [inline] package option.
//box(Label("$\B$","$B$",z2));        // Requires [inline] package option.
box(Label("$A$",z1));             
box(Label("$B$",z2));

pair z=(0,-2);
real m=3;
margin BigMargin=Margin(0,m*dot(unit(z1-z),unit(z0-z)));

draw(Label("$A\cap B$",0),conj(z)--z0,Arrow,BigMargin);
draw(Label("$A\cup B$",0),z--z0,Arrow,BigMargin);
draw(z--z1,Arrow,Margin(0,m));
draw(z--z2,Arrow,Margin(0,m));

shipout(bbox(0.25cm));
\end{asy}
%\caption{Venn diagram}\label{venn}
\end{center}
%\end{figure}

Each graph is drawn in its own environment. One can specify the width
and height to \LaTeX\ explicitly:

\begin{center}
\begin{asy}[3cm,0]
guide center = (0,1){W}..tension 0.8..(0,0){(1,-.5)}..tension 0.8..{W}(0,-1); 

draw((0,1)..(-1,0)..(0,-1));
filldraw(center{E}..{N}(1,0)..{W}cycle);
fill(circle((0,0.5),0.125),white);
fill(circle((0,-0.5),0.125));
\end{asy}
\end{center}

The default width is the full line width:

\begin{center}
\begin{asy}
import graph;

real f(real x) {return sqrt(x);}
pair F(real x) {return (x,f(x));}

real g(real x) {return -sqrt(x);}
pair G(real x) {return (x,g(x));}

guide p=(0,0)--graph(f,0,1,operator ..)--(1,0);
fill(p--cycle,lightgray);
draw(p);
draw((0,0)--graph(g,0,1,operator ..)--(1,0),dotted);

real x=0.5;
pair c=(4,0);

transform T=xscale(0.5);
draw((2.695,0),T*arc(0,0.30cm,20,340),ArcArrow);
fill(shift(c)*T*circle(0,-f(x)),red+white);
draw(F(x)--c+(0,f(x)),dashed+red);
draw(G(x)--c+(0,g(x)),dashed+red);

dot(Label,(1,1));
arrow("$y=\sqrt{x}$",F(0.7),N);

arrow((3,0.5*f(x)),W,1cm,red);
arrow((3,-0.5*f(x)),W,1cm,red);

xaxis("$x$",0,c.x,dashed);
yaxis("$y$");

draw("$r$",(x,0)--F(x),E,red,Arrows,BeginBar,PenMargins);
draw("$r$",(x,0)--G(x),E,red,Arrows,PenMargins);
draw("$r$",c--c+(0,f(x)),Arrow,PenMargin);
dot(c);
\end{asy}
\end{center}

\end{document}