The TikZ-PGF manual is clear that for the matrix library, the delimiters are parentheses and braces:
Delimiters are parentheses or braces to the left and right of a formula or a matrix.
I would like to use brackets as delimiters for a matrix of math nodes. I have tried \left[ and \right] but they do not work.
Is there any way to get brackets as delimiters for a matrix of math nodes?
Thanks.
Use {[} as the argument for left delimiter, and similar for the right.
\documentclass{article} \usepackage{tikz} \usetikzlibrary{matrix} \begin{document} \begin{tikzpicture} \matrix [matrix of math nodes,left delimiter={[},right delimiter={]}] { a_8 & a_1 & a_6 \\ a_3 & a_5 & a_7 \\ a_4 & a_9 & a_2 \\ }; \end{tikzpicture} \end{document} The matrix was copied directly from the pgf manual (section 38.3 Delimiters), only the delimiters changed. The reason you have to put the braces there is, I suspect, that the delimiter specification is placed within a set of brackets, and you therefore have to separate the delimiter brackets from the brackets for the matrix options.
Yes Torbjorn T. is right, there is a problem with the brackets. You need to hide the bracket in tex group {...} but another solution is to write right delimiter=\rbrack,left delimiter= \lbrack
[left delimiter=\lbrack, right delimiter=\rbrack ]. Note the space after \rbrack.