On the derivatives of the principal invariants of a second-order tensor (Q1070852)

The main purpose of this note is to provide a basis-free derivation of the expression for the derivative of the determinant of an arbitrary second-order tensor. Incidently, our method supplies expressions for the derivatives of all of the principal invariants. After disposing of a few mathematical preliminaries, we give an independent and concise treatment of the three-dimensional case, and the general n-dimensional case is worked out.