Non-linear scales on 3D axes#

Resolving a long-standing issue, 3D axes now support non-linear axis scales such as 'log', 'symlog', 'logit', 'asinh', and custom 'function' scales, just like 2D axes. Use set_xscale, set_yscale, and set_zscale to set the scale for each axis independently.

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
import numpy as np

# A sine chirp with increasing frequency and amplitude
x = np.linspace(0, 1, 400)  # time
y = 10 ** (2 * x)  # frequency, growing exponentially from 1 to 100 Hz
phase = 2 * np.pi * (10 ** (2 * x) - 1) / (2 * np.log(10))
z = np.sin(phase) * x ** 2 * 10  # amplitude, growing quadratically

fig = plt.figure()
ax = fig.add_subplot(projection='3d')
ax.plot(x, y, z)

ax.set_xlabel('Time (linear)')
ax.set_ylabel('Frequency, Hz (log)')
ax.set_zlabel('Amplitude (symlog)')

ax.set_yscale('log')
ax.set_zscale('symlog')

plt.show()

(Source code, 2x.png, png)

A 3D plot with a linear x-axis, logarithmic y-axis, and symlog z-axis.

See matplotlib.scale for details on all available scales and their parameters.