Ti6Al4V was implanted by oxygen plasma based ion implantation at pulsed negative voltages of 50 kV with a fluence of 4 x 10(17) O/cm(2). The implanting temperature of below 180 degrees C was controlled by an oil cooling working table. Subsequent annealing was applied the implanted samples in vacuum at 600 degrees C, 650 degrees C and 700 degrees C, respectively. The influence of annealing conditions on hardness and scratch resistance of the oxygen-implanted layer was investigated. The annealing at a lower temperature below 650 degrees C makes the hardness peak widen and shift into the substrate. Scratch resistance of the oxygen implanted layer also was improved significantly. While the temperature increases to 650 degrees C and 700 degrees C, annealing induces a hardness valley value, which is even far lower than that of the substrate. At the same time, scratch resistance deteriorates for the oxygen implanted layer. All annealing samples have a higher elasticity recover than the implanted samples. Crown Copyright (C) 2012 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.