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Al x Ga 1-x N (x ¼ 0.15 and 0.77) films, grown by halide vapor phase epitaxy, were implanted with 300 keV Tm ions. Implantation damage accumulation is investigated with Rutherford backscattering spectrometry/channeling (RBS/C), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and high resolution X-ray diffraction (XRD). Distinct damage behavior for samples with different AlN contents was found. Surface nanocrystallization occurs for samples with x ¼ 0.15, similar to implantation effects observed in GaN. Samples with x ¼ 0.77 approach the behavior of AlN. In particular, surface nanocrystallization is suppressed and the depth range of the stacking fault network, typical for implanted III-nitrides, is decreased. The crystalline quality of the sample with x ¼ 0.15 was investigated to compare random and channeled implantation, showing less concentration of damage but with a higher range for channeled implantation. Surprisingly, the strain field caused by the implantation reaches much deeper into the sample than the defect profiles measured by RBS/C and TEM. This is attributed to the fact that XRD is much more sensitive to low defect densities caused by ions which are channeled to deep regions of the sample. Published by AIP Publishing.