Tensors are geometric objects that describe linear relations between vectors, scalars, and other tensors. Elementary examples of such relations include the dot product, the cross product, and linear maps. Vectors and scalars themselves are also tensors. A tensor can be represented as a multi-dimensional array of numerical values. The order (also degree or rank) of a tensor is the dimensionality of the array needed to represent it, or equivalently, the number of indices needed to label a component of that array. For example, a linear map can be represented by a matrix, a 2-dimensional array, and therefore is a 2nd-order tensor. A vector can be represented as a 1-dimensional array and is a 1st-order tensor. Scalars are single numbers and are thus zeroth-order tensors.
The stress tensor, a second-order tensor.
The tensor's components, in a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system, form the matrix
whose columns are the stresses (forces per unit area) acting on the e1, e2, and e3 faces of the cube.