# What is the smallest paper dimension that can be used in (La)TeX?

I want to know what is the smallest paper dimension (in big point) that can be used in (La)TeX?

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The smallest unit it TeX is `1sp` (scaled point, 65536 sp = 1 pt). The `preview` package sets its default margin to 0.50001bp (used on all four sites) to ensure that the final size is never lower than 1bp. Its manual states that this is because lower sizes can cause issues with Ghostscript. I therefore wouldn't go below this value either if you plan to use DVI output and convert it using Ghostscript later. –  Martin Scharrer Jul 10 '11 at 12:20
@xport the +1 comment should be included only if you have a constructive comment, not just to make sure you print your name 18341983 times through every post. Just upvote the comment, unless you have something useful to add. –  Vivi Jul 11 '11 at 3:10
@Vivi: Where does 18341983 come from? –  xport Jul 11 '11 at 3:18
@xport : that's a perfect valid point. It's good we are getting to the crux of the matter now. –  Vivi Jul 13 '11 at 9:51
Surely the important "big" number is 2147483647 (the largest integer TeX can handle). That many `sp` is about 37 feet across by my calculation... –  Seamus Jul 16 '11 at 11:14
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`pt` is a unit defined by TeX, also called TeX point (1in =72.27pt). The one for PostScript is `bp`, also called big point (1in=72bp), the reason why it should be at least `1bp x 1bp`

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The smallest unit it TeX is 1sp (scaled point, 65536 sp = 1 pt). The preview package sets its default margin to 0.50001bp (used on all four sites) to ensure that the final size is never lower than 1bp. Its manual states that this is because lower sizes can cause issues with Ghostscript. I therefore wouldn't go below this value either if you plan to use DVI output and convert it using Ghostscript later. As you know EPS files (and some PS) have a `BoundingBox` header which is gives the box as four integer values in `bp`. Anything below `1bp` is therefore down-rounded to `0pt` which causes issues. The additional `HiResBoundingBox` supports fractional numbers but isn't always used by all tools.
The same `bp` unit is used for PDF (which is like (E)PS created by Adobe). I just tested it successfully with a `\rule{.001bp}{.001bp}` which makes `pdfinfo` state `Page size: 0.001 x 0.001 pts` (here `pts` = `bp`). The Adobe Acrobat Reader displays that PDF without errors but seems to only be able to display 3bp x 3bp at maximum zoom of 6400%.