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<p> Ionic currents were used to probe amorphous MnO<p style="font-variant: small-caps">2</p>, which is a battery cathode material in lithium ion batteries, that was template electrodeposited in polycarbonate cylindrical nanopores. The porous MnO<p style="font-variant: small-caps"> 2</p> occupies the volume extending approximately 1 &mu;m into the pore from one end and nanovoid channels, in the MnO<p style="font-variant: small-caps">2</p>, allow for electrolyte solution to pass through from one end to the other. </p><p> Presented in this thesis are the results of ionic current studies used to probe ion transport through amorphous MnO<p style="font-variant: small-caps">2</p>, in different oxidation states, with 100 mM LiClO₄ electrolyte in propylene carbonate (PC) solvent. Current-voltage curves, from ionic current-measurements, were unable to resolve excess surface charge in the electrodeposited MnO<p style="font-variant: small-caps"> 2</p>. A comparison of current-voltage curves from when the MnO<p style="font-variant: small-caps"> 2</p> was cycled between lithium inserted and deinserted oxidation states showed a trend of increasing resistance over a series of three lithium insertion and deinsertion cycles.</p>

An explicit Mueller-Regge model (with poles only) is constructed for the investigation of single-particle-inclusive processes in the quasi-two-body and triple-Regge subspace of the fragmentation region. The model is then applied in studies of nucleon production processes. The inclusive cross sections are considered and compared with the available data. The qualitative agreement between the cross section data and the model is reasonable, but the model is not satisfactory in details. Regge cuts are introduced into the model via the absorption model prescription. Then nucleon production processes are reinvestigated in this modified model and the polarization of the produced nucleon is predicted. The model is applied to Lambda production (in a nucleon interaction), and the agreement between theoretical prediction and the experimental data for the polarization of the Lambda in the small p region is remarkable. Finally, the model is applied to tensor meson production and the cross section and the spin density matrix elements are predicted.

This thesis is presented in two distinct parts. In part one, the single lepton yield due to internal conversion of soft virtual photons in high energy proton-proton collisions is calculated using soft photon techniques. Photons originating in bremsstrahlung of charged hadrons, directly produced photons and interference effects are considered. The result is compared with the experimental e/ir ratio as a function of transverse momentum. In part two, a Mueller-Regge model for the process is constructed and compared with newly available inclusive cross section data. Cut corrections are required for baryon exchange by the Carlitz-Kislinger prescription for removing unobserved parity partners and accordingly absorption effects are calculated. The conventional [delta] baryon trajectory is found to be satisfactory, contrary to other reports.

An explicit Mueller-Regge model is constructed for the investigations of one-particle-inclusive 2 processes in the fixed-M and triple-Regge region. The model is then applied in the studies of [delta] production and vector and tensor meson productions. The inclusive cross sections and density matrices of the decaying produced resonances are considered and compared with the available data. The qualitative behaviour of the cross section data can be approximately accounted for by the model, but the model is not satisfactory in details. By analogy with two-body processes absorption is introduced and the resultant model with cuts is used in the reinvestigations of the data. There is some improvement in the agreement between the model and the data with the introduction of absorption.

<p> This dissertation shows the first evidence of the process <i>e</i>⁺<i>e</i>^&minus; &rarr; &gamma;&eta;<i>_c</i>(1<i>S</i>) using data collected by the BESIII experiment operating at BEPCII. This process can be used as a probe to study the nature of recently discovered charmonium-like Y states between 4.0 and 4.6 GeV, including the <i>Y</i>(4260) and <i>Y</i>(4360). Data collected at six center-of-mass energies are analyzed, namely: 4.01, 4.23, 4.26, 4.36, 4.42, and 4.60 GeV, corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 4.6 fb^&minus;1. We measure the Born cross section, &sigma;<i>_E</i>(<i>e</i>⁺<i>e</i>^&minus; &rarr; &gamma;&eta;<i>_c</i>(1<i> S</i>)), at each energy using a combination of twelve &eta;<i>_c</i>(1<i>S</i>) decay channels. Because the significance of the signal is marginal at each energy (&le; 3.0&sigma;), we also combine all six energies under various assumptions for the energy-dependence of the cross section. If a <i>Y</i>(4260) is assumed, we measure &sigma;4_.26(<i>e</i>⁺<i>e</i>^&minus; &rarr; &gamma;&eta;<i>_c</i>(1<i>S</i>)) = 2.11 &plusmn; 0.49 (stat.) &plusmn; 0.33 (syst.) pb with a significance of 4.2&sigma;. With our current statistics we are unable to distinguish the <i> Y</i>(4260) process from others.</p>

<p> T2K is a long baseline neutrino oscillation experiment located in Japan. It was built mainly to detect muon neutrino to electron neutrino oscillation and to measure the mixing angle &thetas;₁₃ of the PMNS matrix, along with the precision measurement of &thetas;₂₃ and mass differences. A &nu;_&mu; beam is produced at the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC) in Tokai and travels to the far detector in Kamioka, Japan. There is an ensemble of detectors at 280 m downstream of the target that form the near detector. Super-Kamiokande, a water Cherenkov detector, located 295 km away from the target serves as the far detector. </p><p> The two main backgrounds for electron neutrino appearance at the Super-Kamiokande are the inherent electron neutrino component of the beam and the \pizero{} particle produced via neutral current channel (NC1&pi;⁰) that mimics the electron neutrino interaction signature. To effectively constrain the NC1&pi;⁰ interaction rate on water, the Pi0 Detector (P0D) was built as one of the near detectors. This detector can be filled and drained with water periodically to enable extraction of neutrino interactions on water. </p><p> This analysis measures the NC1&pi;⁰ interaction rate on water in the P0D. It uses neutrino beam data of 3.53 &times; 10²⁰ protons-on-target (POT) for the water-in configuration of the P0D and 6.70 &times; 10²⁰ POT for the water-out configuration. A set of selections are implemented to obtain a sample enriched in signal events. </p><p> The &pi;⁰ invariant mass distribution is compared between data and Monte Carlo. Parameter estimation using Markov Chain Monte Carlo sampling method is performed to measure the signal events in data. </p><p> The data fit results in 130 &plusmn; 20 events on water including both statistical and systematic uncertainties for an expected value of 167 events predicted by the NEUT Monte Carlo. The ratio between nominal Monte Carlo and the best fit value is 0.78 &plusmn; 0.12.</p><p>