xaxis matplotlib - Python

Introduction

xaxis is a crucial concept in the matplotlib library of Python. It controls the horizontal axis of a plot and helps to set the limits, ticks, labels, and other properties. Without the proper use of xaxis, a plot can't convey its message effectively.

Usage

To use xaxis, we first create our plot with plt.subplots() function and store it in a variable. Then we can use set_xlim() method to set the limits of the x-axis. For instance, ax.set_xlim(0,10) sets the x-axis limits from 0 to 10. We can also modify the major and minor ticks of x-axis using set_xticks() and set_xticklabels() methods.

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

fig, ax = plt.subplots()
ax.set_xlim(0, 10) # set x axis limit
ax.set_xticks([0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10]) # set x axis major ticks
ax.set_xticklabels(['Start', '$2$', '$4$', '$6$', '$8$', 'End']) # set x axis tick labels

Example

Let's demonstrate an example of xaxis usage in matplotlib. We will plot a sin wave and set limits and ticks of x-axis to enhance its readability.

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

# Create data
x = np.linspace(0, 4 * np.pi, 1000)
y = np.sin(x)

# Plot data
fig, ax = plt.subplots()
ax.plot(x, y)

# Set x axis limit and ticks
ax.set_xlim(0, 4 * np.pi)
ax.set_xticks([0, np.pi, 2 * np.pi, 3 * np.pi, 4 * np.pi])
ax.set_xticklabels(['$0$', r'$\pi$', r'$2\pi$', r'$3\pi$', r'$4\pi$'])

# Display plot
plt.show()

In the above example, we first created a sin wave using the numpy library. Then, we used the plot() function to plot it. After that, we set the limit and ticks of x-axis using set_xlim() and set_xticks() methods. Finally, we displayed the plot using show() method.

Conclusion

xaxis is an essential concept for creating a plot with clear readability. With proper management of xaxis's properties like limits, ticks, and labels, we can create a plot that conveys the message effectively to its audience.