Exotics are a native resource, one mined from bodies rather than made. They are dense, almost black, harder than any other native, and have the highest melting point of any native that melts. They are part of a body's makeup only in the Deadzone, and scarce even there. Deposits of exotics, pockets found below a body's layers by deep scanning, also occur in the Static and the Fade.
A Foundry fuses exotics with steel plate into exotic alloy, and with wire and coolant into superconductors. Shielding, heavy frames, field coils and drive cores take raw exotics as well, so every gate depends on them.