Rodinium

• Metallic element (DS9 Technical Manual)
• One of the hardest known substances to Federation material science
  • Well over 20 times harder than diamond
    • Harder than tritanium, which is known to be 21.4 times harder than diamond by "Obsession"
  • Though harder than tritanium, it is easier to work and less resistant to directed weapons
    • "Fatal Error" implies that a phaser rifle could cut through rodinium
• Known to Federation material science by 2161 (TOS: "Balance of Terror")
  • Given its usage in the construction of Earth's Romulan Neutral Zone outposts
• Common in construction of permanent installations that require strong physically-defensive design (TOS: "Balance of Terror"; SCE Short Story: "Fatal Error")
• Less common in starship construction due to weight, but occasionally used for particular hull components
  • Common approach in Cardassian starship design (DS9: "The Maquis, Part I"; TNG Novel: A Time to Sow)
• Occasionally used on a smaller scale for any components requiring extreme durability (DS9 Novel: Fearful Symmetry)