Dilithium - Definition and Overview

Dilithium is a fictional crystalline mineral from the universe of Star Trek. It has the property of disrupting any ongoing nuclear reaction. In the Star Trek universe, a beam of matter and antimatter colliding in dilithium generates a plasma that is used to power the warp drives that allows starships to travel faster than light. This function of dilithium was officially established with the Star Trek: The Next Generation series, and in earlier works its properties were not clearly defined.

In the original series, dilithium crystals occurred only naturally, making the search for them a major plot element for a number of stories. To avoid this type of plot, the backstory of The Next Generation has dilithium synthesized artificially.

See also

• Trilithium
• "Dilithium (http://www.memory-alpha.org/en/index.php/Dilithium)" article at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki

There is a rock formation in Owen's River Gorge, California called The Dilithium Crystal.