Silver

The amount ratio n(¹⁰⁷Pd)/n(¹⁰⁷Ag) is used in geochronology to date major events in the Solar System [344], [345], [346], [347], [348], [353]. Although ¹⁰⁷Ag is naturally occurring, it is also the daughter product by beta decay of ¹⁰⁷Pd. If both excess ¹⁰⁷Ag and ¹⁰⁷Pd are present in a sample of extraterrestrial origin, then the material would have formed sometime after ¹⁰⁷Pd decayed (i.e. sometime after the 6.5-million-year half-life of ¹⁰⁷Pd). The n(¹⁰⁷Pd)/n(¹⁰⁷Ag) amount ratio can be measured to help determine when the ¹⁰⁷Pd decay process began and determine how much time has elapsed since the material was formed.

¹⁰⁷Ag is being studied as a possible target for cyclotron production of ¹⁰³Pd (with a half-life of 17 days) via the ¹⁰⁷Ag (p, α n) ¹⁰³Pd reaction. ¹⁰³Pd releases X-rays and Auger electrons at the rate of about 80 X-rays and 186 Auger electrons per 100 decays of ¹⁰³Pd, which makes this isotope an ideal candidate for internal radiotherapy for the treatment of cancers. The production of this isotope in a no-carrier form (not formed in another solution) is important for its medical uses. By using neutrons, photons, and charged particles to force reactions with isotopes of a higher mass number than 103, ¹⁰³Pd will occur in a fraction of those reactions. The most common methods of ¹⁰³Pd production use targets of rhodium or other isotopes of palladium. However, ¹⁰⁷Ag has also been studied as a feasible option [349], [354]. ¹⁰⁹Ag is used to produce the gamma reference source 110mAg to help calibrate gamma detectors [349], [354].