A β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) based monomer (MAH-β-CD) containing vinyl and carboxyl functional groups was synthesized by reaction of β-CD with maleic anhydride (MAH). A novel hydrogel, poly(AAc-co-MAH-β-CD) with pH and ionic strength sensitivities, was prepared by irradiating the aqueous solution mixture of acrylic acid (AAc) and MAH-β-CD with electron beam. The effect of the feed ratio of the components and irradiation dose on the swelling and deswelling properties of the hydrogel was studied, respectively, the effect of pH and ionic strength on the swelling ratio was determined. Experimental results showed that these copolymer hydrogels did not show any noticeable change in swelling ratio at lower pH range (pH 1–3). However they showed an abrupt increase in swelling ratio at the range of pH 3–6, due to the ionization of carboxyl groups. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrometer was applied in the attenuated total reflectance (ATR) mode for analyzing the structure change of the hydrogels after the treatment of different pH buffer solutions.