Is tensor product commutative for symmetric tensors

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Let $V$ be a vector space over $\mathbb{R}$ and $V^*$ the dual vector space. I'm trying to show that for a symmetric tensor $T = T_{\mu\nu}e^{\mu}\otimes e^\nu$ where
$T(v_1,v_2)=T(v_2,v_1)$, the tensor components $T_{\mu\nu}$ is unchanged by permutation of indices, i.e. $$T_{\mu\nu}=T_{\nu\mu}.$$

I started off with the definition of a symmetric tensor $T(v_1,v_2)=T(v_2,v_1)$:
$$T_{\mu\nu}e^{\mu}(v_1)\otimes e^\nu(v_2)=T_{\mu\nu}e^{\mu}(v_2)\otimes e^\nu(v_1)$$
Rearraging indices $\mu$ and $\nu$ on the RHS,
$$T_{\mu\nu}e^{\mu}(v_1)\otimes e^\nu(v_2)=T_{\nu\mu}e^{\nu}(v_2)\otimes e^\mu(v_1).$$

So it seems that the tensor product of $$e^{\mu}(v_1)\otimes e^\nu(v_2)=e^{\nu}(v_2)\otimes e^\mu(v_1)$$ is commutative for symmetric tensors if we require $T_{\mu\nu}=T_{\nu\mu}$. But I read that tensor products are in general not commutative. Why is it commutative in this case?

Best Answer

What you write as $e^{\mu}(v_1)\otimes e^\nu(v_2)$ should really be $(e^{\mu}\otimes e^\nu)(v_1, v_2)=e^{\mu}(v_1)\, e^\nu(v_2),$ where the last expression is a product of two real values $e^{\mu}(v_1)$ and $e^\nu(v_2)$ and is therefore commutative, i.e. $e^{\mu}(v_1)\, e^\nu(v_2) = e^\nu(v_2) \, e^{\mu}(v_1).$