TeXipedia

leftrightharpoons

Represents a reversible chemical reaction or equilibrium relationship with opposing harpoon-style arrows.

Overview

Commonly employed in chemistry and physical sciences to denote equilibrium reactions where reactants and products can interconvert. The double-headed harpoon notation emphasizes the bidirectional nature of the process.

  • Essential in chemical equation writing to show reversible reactions
  • Used in physical chemistry to indicate dynamic equilibrium
  • Appears in thermodynamics and kinetics discussions
  • More visually distinctive than simple double arrows for emphasizing reaction reversibility

Examples

Representing a reversible chemical reaction between compounds A and B.

A⇋BA \leftrightharpoons B 
A \leftrightharpoons B

Showing equilibrium between two chemical states with temperature dependence.

H2O(l)⇋H2O(g),T=100∘C\text{H}_2\text{O}(l) \leftrightharpoons \text{H}_2\text{O}(g), \quad T = 100^{\circ}\text{C} 
\text{H}_2\text{O}(l) \leftrightharpoons \text{H}_2\text{O}(g), \quad T = 100^{\circ}\text{C}

Indicating a dynamic equilibrium in a mathematical system.

x+y⇋2zx + y \leftrightharpoons 2z 
x + y \leftrightharpoons 2z