Germanium

Germanium is an element critical in the construction of Kearny Fuchida drives and is an expensive and rare commodity. The core of the drive is composed of an alloy made with titanium.

Concerning the electronic attributes, it is a half-metal and thusly useful in many electronic applications as a semiconductor. Early solid state electronics were based on germanium.

The planet Alphard, the capital of the Marian Hegemony, has huge resources of germanium and is the source of the planet's wealth. The Federated-Boeing Interstellar Galax Megaplex has the largest known factory station: a germanium ore refinery massing more than 2 megatons.