China to Curb Exports of Gallium and Germanium. Why the Chip-Making Metals Are Important. Text size Gallium and germanium are used in power chips, radio frequency amplifiers, LEDs, and other applications. STR/AFP via Getty Images The U.S.-China conflict over chip-making technology keeps ratcheting up. The latest twist is that Beijing is restricting exports of two metals that are critical to semiconductor manufacturing, using its dominance in production to put pressure on the U.S. China produces around 60% of the world’s germanium and around 80% of its gallium, according to the Critical Raw Materials Alliance, an industry body. Materials incorporating the...