Wave scattering in a complicated environment is a common challenge in many engineering fields because the complexity makes exact solutions impractical to find, and the sensitivity to detail in the short-wavelength limit makes a numerical solution relevant only to a specific realization. On the other hand, wave chaos offers a statistical approach to understand the properties of complicated wave systems through the use of random matrix theory (RMT). A bridge between the theory and practical applications is the random coupling model (RCM) which connects the universal features predicted by RMT and the specific details of a real wave scattering system. The RCM gives a complete model for many wave properties and is beneficial for many physical and engineering fields that involve complicated wave scattering systems.

One major contribution of this dissertation is that I have utilized three microwave systems to thoroughly test the RCM in complicated wave systems with varied loss, including a cryogenic system with a superconducting microwave cavity for testing the extremely-low-loss case. I have also experimentally tested an extension of the RCM that includes short-orbit corrections. Another novel result is development of a complete model based on the RCM for the fading phenomenon extensively studied in the wireless communication fields. This fading model encompasses the traditional fading models as its high-loss limit case and further predicts the fading statistics in the low-loss limit. This model provides the first physical explanation for the fitting parameters used in fading models.

I have also applied the RCM to additional experimental wave properties of a complicated wave system, such as the impedance matrix, the scattering matrix, the variance ratio, and the thermopower. These predictions are significant for nuclear scattering, atomic physics, quantum transport in condensed matter systems, electromagnetics, acoustics, geophysics, etc.