How Do You Do Subscript and Superscript in AutoCAD?

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In AutoCAD, you can easily add subscript and superscript text to your drawings. Subscript and superscript are useful when you want to display mathematical formulas, chemical symbols, footnotes, or any other text that requires a smaller size and different positioning.

To apply subscript or superscript formatting in AutoCAD, follow the steps below:

1. Using the MTEXT command:
The MTEXT command is one of the most commonly used commands for creating and editing text in AutoCAD. To add subscript or superscript text using this command, simply follow these steps:

  • Open the drawing where you want to add subscript or superscript text.
  • Type “MTEXT” in the command line and press Enter.
  • In the Text Editor window that appears, type your desired text.
  • To create a subscript, select the part of the text you want to convert.
  • Right-click on the selected text and choose “Stack” from the context menu.
  • In the Stack Properties dialog box, select “Subscript” from the Superscript/Subscript drop-down menu.
  • Click OK to apply the changes.

2. Using Unicode codes:
If you prefer using Unicode codes instead of the MTEXT command, you can do so by following these steps:

  • Open the drawing where you want to add subscript or superscript text.
  • Type “UCS2” in the command line and press Enter.
  • In the Character Map window that appears, locate and select the Unicode character for either subscript or superscript (e.g., U+2082 for subscript two).
  • Click on Select to choose the character, and then click on Copy to copy it to your clipboard.
  • Switch back to AutoCAD and type the desired text in the drawing.
  • Place your cursor where you want the subscript or superscript to appear.
  • Press Ctrl+V to paste the Unicode character, and it will be displayed as either subscript or superscript text.

Note: In both methods, you can easily switch back to normal text by selecting the subscript or superscript part and choosing the appropriate option from the Stack Properties dialog box or deleting the Unicode character.

Tips for Using Subscript and Superscript:

To make your subscript and superscript text more visually appealing, consider these tips:

  • Avoid using excessive amounts of subscript or superscript text in a single paragraph, as it can make the content difficult to read.
  • Use subscript for chemical symbols, mathematical formulas (e., H₂O), footnotes (e., X[1]), etc.
  • Use superscript for ordinal numbers (e., 1st, 2nd, etc.), exponents (e., xy), trademarks (e., AutoCAD®), etc.
  • Ensure that any subscript or superscript text is properly aligned with surrounding content for better readability.

With these techniques, you can easily incorporate subscript and superscript into your AutoCAD drawings. Whether you need to display complex mathematical equations or annotate your designs with footnotes, AutoCAD provides flexible options to meet your needs.