Experimental evidence is presented showing that in conformity with theoretical expectations, discharge gas atoms are trapped in sputtered films whenever a gas of atomic mass smaller than that of the c athode is used. In such a case, discharge gas atoms may be reflected by the cathode as high energy neutrals and get incorporated in the growing film. Niobium films have been produced using Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe and then analysed for rare gas content by thermal extraction. The gas concentrations are found to vary from the several percent range for Ne down to the ppm level for Kr and Xe. The noble gas conce ntration in the film influences the RRR and, in the case of high concentration, also the critical temperature. To study the effect of the implanted noble gas on the superconducting RF parameters, seve ral 1.5 GHz copper cavities have been niobium-coated using the different discharge gases. The noble gases trapped in the film affect the penetration depth, the temperature dependent losses (RBCS), the losses induced by the presence of trapped fluxons, but have no significant influence on the residual resistance
