Set font for tiled layout (axis tick label font)

I have a series of plots that are in a 2x1 tiled layout. I would like to change the font for all components of the plot to Helvetica, and I am especially keen to figure out how to do this for the axis tick labels.

Here is an example of my code:

figure(1)
t = tiledlayout(2,1);

ax1 = nexttile;
plot(time, avg_sst, 'color', 'r', 'LineWidth', 2)
ax1.XGrid = 'on';
ax1.XAxis.FontSize = 18;
ax1.YAxis.FontSize = 18;
ylabel('\circ C')

ax2 = nexttile;
plot(time, avg_sst_anom, 'color', 'k', 'LineWidth', 2)
ax2.XGrid = 'on';
ax2.XAxis.FontSize = 18;
ax2.YAxis.FontSize = 18;
ylabel('\circ C anom')

I have tried the following, but either end up with no change to the font, or an error message:

ax1.FontName = 'Helvetica'; 
ax1.XAxis.FontName = 'Helvetica';
ax1.XLabel.FontName = 'Helvetica';
t.FontName = 'Helvetica';
set(gca, 'FontName', 'Helvetica')
set(gca, 'fontname', 'Helvetica')

Thanks in advance :)

[dpb]

At least here, the default font is 'Helvetica' so won't see any visible change.

What does

ax1.XAxis.FontName

return?

BTW,

ax1.Fontname='Helvetica';

will change both X- and Y-axes fonts at same time; only need to address the individual axes objects if want them to be different from each other.

Try something noticeably different and then change back to prove is actually changing.

[Adam Danz]

Change all of them at once using,

set([ax1, ax2], 'FontName', 'Helvetica')

or

set(get([ax1, ax2],'XAxis'), 'FontName', 'Helvetica')

But like dpb mentioned, that's the default font, at least on my end. To see your default axis font,

get(0,'defaultAxesFontName')

[dpb]

+1 to think of/suggest looking at system default setting...

[Lutrinae]

You all are correct that the default is Helvetica -- thanks! The responses are still helpful, as I am going to change the front from Helvetica to something else.

All of the following work:

ax1.XAxis.FontName
set([ax1, ax2], 'FontName', 'Helvetica')
set(get([ax1, ax2],'XAxis'), 'FontName', 'Helvetica')

Weirdly, this one continues to throw an error, so I am changing the font on each axis individually:

ax1.Fontname='Helvetica';

[Adam Danz]

The error tells you the problem. "Fontname" isn't a property.

But FontName is; exactly how you're using it in the previous lines in set().

[dpb]

>> figure
>> hAx=axes;
>> hAx.FontName='Arial';
>> set(hAx,'fontname','Helvetica')
>> get(hAx,'fontname')
ans =
    'Arial'
>> hAx.Fontname
Unrecognized method, property, or field 'Fontname' for class 'matlab.graphics.axis.Axes'. 
Did you mean:
>> hAx.FontName
ans =
    'Helvetica'
>> 

One of the quirks (and an irritating one at that) of MATLAB: get, set are case-insensitive but the "dot" notation isn't.