Org-mode: How to LaTeX export "$n$-" correctly?

Question

I have notes containing many of the following type of LaTeX fragments

$p$-adic ... $n$-th ...

But org-mode exports them as literal dollar sign instead of math. The problem seems to be the - directly following the second dollar sign.

How can I change this behavior?

Answer 1

Change the syntax of character - from symbol to punctuation in org-mode. You can do that by:

(defun my-org-change-minus-syntax-fun ()
  (modify-syntax-entry ?- "."))

(add-hook 'org-mode-hook #'my-org-change-minus-syntax-fun)

You can add these lines to your init file.

Note that I have running that setup for ages now with no relevant negative effects.

Answer 2

Org-mode translates $n$ to \(n\) in latex. You can also directly write \(n\)-doc in the org file and it should export just fine.