Effects of gamma irradiations on reactive pulsed laser deposited vanadium dioxide thin films

•Synthesis of VO2 thin films by Reactive pulsed laser deposition has been achieved.•Properties VO2 remain mainly unaffected when subjected to gamma ray doses similar to those encountered during space missions.•The long range crystal structure of VO2 remains intact upon irradiation on different doses up to 100kGy.•XPS reveals a shift from V4+ to V5+ oxidation state upon irradiation, due to the frenkel pair formation on the surface.•Irradiated films show the characteristic SMT of VO2, although the electrical and optical properties are slightly affected.