UNT assistant professors Yuan Li (physics), Xiao Li (materials science and engineering) and Yuanxi Wang (physics) have earned more than $1.8 million in total grants through the U.S. National Science Foundation's Faculty Early Career Development Program. The awards will support their research ranging from unlocking new possibilities with liquid crystals for template nucleation and growth of inorganic species, to furthering the understanding of supermassive black holes and investigating molecular defects in solid materials for quantum devices.

The NSF CAREER award is the most prestigious recognition for early career research faculty. Including its most recent honorees, UNT has 25 faculty members who have earned NSF CAREER awards over the years.