Loading an AngularJS controller dynamically

I also needed to add multiple views and bind them to controllers at runtime from a javascript function outside the angularJs context, so here's what I came up with :

<div id="mController" ng-controller="mainController">
</div>

<div id="ee">
  2nd controller's view should be rendred here
</div>

now calling setCnt() function will inject and compile the html, and it will be linked to the 2nd controller:

var app = angular.module('app', []);

function setCnt() {
  // Injecting the view's html
  var e1 = angular.element(document.getElementById("ee"));
  e1.html('<div ng-controller="ctl2">my name: {{name}}</div>');

  // Compile controller 2 html
  var mController = angular.element(document.getElementById("mController"));
  mController.scope().activateView(e1);
}

app.controller("mainController", function($scope, $compile) {
  $scope.name = "this is name 1";

  $scope.activateView = function(ele) {
    $compile(ele.contents())($scope);
    $scope.$apply();
  };
});

app.controller("ctl2", function($scope) {
  $scope.name = "this is name 2";
});

here's an example to test this : https://snippet.run/x4bc

hope this helps.

I've found a possible solution where I don't need to know about the controller before bootstrapping:

// Make module Foo and store $controllerProvider in a global
var controllerProvider = null;
angular.module('Foo', [], function($controllerProvider) {
    controllerProvider = $controllerProvider;
});
// Bootstrap Foo
angular.bootstrap($('body'), ['Foo']);

// .. time passes ..

// Load javascript file with Ctrl controller
angular.module('Foo').controller('Ctrl', function($scope, $rootScope) {
    $scope.msg = "It works! rootScope is " + $rootScope.$id +
        ", should be " + $('body').scope().$id;
});
// Load html file with content that uses Ctrl controller
$('<div id="ctrl" ng-controller="Ctrl" ng-bind="msg">').appendTo('body');

// Register Ctrl controller manually
// If you can reference the controller function directly, just run:
// $controllerProvider.register(controllerName, controllerFunction);
// Note: I haven't found a way to get $controllerProvider at this stage
//    so I keep a reference from when I ran my module config
function registerController(moduleName, controllerName) {
    // Here I cannot get the controller function directly so I
    // need to loop through the module's _invokeQueue to get it
    var queue = angular.module(moduleName)._invokeQueue;
    for(var i=0;i<queue.length;i++) {
        var call = queue[i];
        if(call[0] == "$controllerProvider" &&
           call[1] == "register" &&
           call[2][0] == controllerName) {
            controllerProvider.register(controllerName, call[2][1]);
        }
    }
}
registerController("Foo", "Ctrl");
// compile the new element
$('body').injector().invoke(function($compile, $rootScope) {
    $compile($('#ctrl'))($rootScope);
    $rootScope.$apply();
});

Fiddle. Only problem is that you need to store the $controllerProvider and use it in a place where it really shouldn't be used (after the bootstrap). Also there doesn't seem to be an easy way to get at a function used to define a controller until it is registered, so I need to loop through the module's _invokeQueue, which is undocumented.

UPDATE: To register directives and services, instead of $controllerProvider.register simply use $compileProvider.directive and $provide.factory respectively. Again, you'll need to save references to these in your initial module config.

UDPATE 2: Here's a fiddle which automatically registers all controllers/directives/services loaded without having to specify them individually.

I would suggest to take a look at ocLazyLoad library, which registers modules (or controllers, services etc on existing module) at run time and also loads them using requireJs or other such library.

bootstrap() will call the AngularJS compiler for you, just like ng-app.

// Make module Foo
angular.module('Foo', []);
// Make controller Ctrl in module Foo
angular.module('Foo').controller('Ctrl', function($scope) { 
    $scope.name = 'DeathCarrot' });
// Load an element that uses controller Ctrl
$('<div ng-controller="Ctrl">{{name}}</div>').appendTo('body');
// Bootstrap with Foo
angular.bootstrap($('body'), ['Foo']);

Fiddle.