Silica glass and polycrystalline alumina slides were implanted with palladium ions. Irradiations at 47 and 2 keV energies have been performed on silica samples, at 2 keV energy on alumina. Different fluences have been used in the 10 16 ion cm −2 range. Samples have been characterized by X-ray and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopies (UPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) and optical absorption spectroscopy. In all samples, metallic palladium is present in the form of clusters whose diameter depends on the local dopant concentration. Moreover, palladium silicide compounds have been observed in the 5 × 10 16 Pd + cm −2 implanted silica sample. The valence band of these composites has been measured.