Isotropic second-rank tensor ($T_{ij}=\lambda {\delta }_{ij}$)

A second-rank Cartesian tensor invariant under every proper rotation matrix is a scalar multiple of the Kronecker delta. Half-turns about the coordinate axes kill its off-diagonal entries, and quarter-turns make its diagonal entries equal. A tensor of the form $v_i{w}_j$ is an outer product with matrix rank at most one, so it is isotropic in three dimensions only when it vanishes, equivalently when $v=0$ or $w=0$.

Here $V_d$ is the volume of the unit ball in $d$-dimensional Euclidean space. Rotational symmetry makes the integral an isotropic second-rank tensor $C{\delta }_{ij}$. Taking its trace gives $dC={\int }_{|x|\le R}|x{|}^2{d}^{d}x=d{V}_d{\int }_0^R{r}^{d+1}dr$. This proves the formula. For a constant matrix $M$, contraction gives $\int x^{T}Mx{d}^{d}x=V_d{R}^{d+2}\mathrm{tr}M/(d+2)$. In three dimensions the coefficient is $4\pi R^5/15$.