I can create the equation
a^(1/2) times b^(1/2) = (ab)^(1/2)
having to put parentheses around the exponents to keep the dividing line and denominator in the exponents, but I would not ordinarily write or see parentheses around the exponents in such expressions. Is there a way to get rid of them or suppress their display in a LibreOffice math formula?
a^{1/2} times b^{1/2}...
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a^{1/2} times b^{1/2}…
That’s it. Thanks!
If you want to apply the standard, according to which fractions are to be written with a horizontal fraction bar, you can use the following:
a sup{1 over 2} cdot b sup{1 over 2} = ( a cdot b) sup{1 over 2}
The example also uses the “international” multiplication operator (“centered dot”, most common in algebra if not omitted, imo) in place of the cross.
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Great, thanks. I tried using cdot but with a preceding slash, which didn’t work.
Just found; just for completeness:
A cdot of Math may not be rendered in LibreOffice like “centered dot” (U+00B7 MIDDLE DOT), but rather as a “multiplication dot” (U+22C5 DOT OPERATOR). The StarMath font for symbols, at least, has an appropriate glyph only for the second code point. Some different fonts also often used in Writer seem to show the MIDDLE DOT a little bit higher in the line, and some as a tiny filled square instead of a tiny filled circle.
Noted for possible future reference, thanks. But if “cdot” yields the appropriate DOT OPERATOR glyph in LibreOffice, I don’t suppose it matters that MIDDLE DOT also exists in Unicode fonts. I suppose it’s more of a linguistic curiosity, that “cdot” doesn’t produce a Centered (middle) dot, but rather the mathematical symbol. Please inform me if there’s some practical significance that I may have missed, thanks.
The Math Guide is a useful reference, free download from English documentation | LibreOffice Documentation - LibreOffice User Guides