An electron beam irradiation method is suggested for growing V2O5 nanorods. V2O5 nanorods with an orthorhombic structure (alpha-V2O5) were well grown by electron beam irradiation and the nanorod growth was greatly enhanced by inserting a buffer layer. The X-ray diffraction pattern of V2O5 nanorods grown at a dose rate of 800 kGy considerably changed due to an increase in structural inhomogeneity formed by vanadyl-oxygen vacancies. The transition temperature increased due to the increasing surface resistance and was steeply enhanced by the increase in crystallinity with growing nanorods. Two photoluminescence peaks were observed at 530 nm and 710 nm for the V2O5 nanorods grown at a dose rate of 800 kGy due to oxygen vacancies and a band edge transition. (C) 2013 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.