##Overview of the project:##
The purpose of this study presented here is a possible solution to the energy and model discrepancies seen in recent Charged-Current Quasi Elastic (CCQE) measurements. In this project, we focus on developing a tool, also known as a smearing and acceptance filter simulation that apply detector effects onto Monte Carlo truth for the purposes of cross-section extraction. This is motivated by the fact that neutrino interaction model and energy discrepancies were seen in recent CCQE cross-section measurements and model independent studies are a possible solution to the analysis of experimental data.
##Declaration (written by project supervisor Dr Morgan Wascko):## The Masters project was done in pairs.
Both students are new to the T2K-Neutrino research group, and are using software, and indeed a programming language (C++), that is new to them this year. The students worked jointly on the beginning steps of the project, learning how to simulate neutrino interactions and detection using the standard software and analysis tools of the field (NuWro and ROOT) and then they diverged to work on different aspects of the project after the initial steps. Azeem Khan used MINUIT2 to perform fake data studies of interaction model parameter extraction. This was done by fitting observables as predicted by the NuWro neutrino interaction event generation. Eunice Chen focused on adding experiment-tuned detector effects onto neutrino-nucleus interaction simulation. This used hand-written Monte Carlo code to smear NuWro-simulated events using information determined from the full T2K near detector simulation. The combined goal of this work was to build and test tools that may be used to publish accessible and re-analysable neutrino interaction cross-section data. They were both assisted by Luke Pickering, a 3rd year PhD student on T2K, but both have produced their own original work.