Morphology controllable and highly luminescent monoclinic LaPO4:Eu3+ microspheres

•Morphology controllable LaPO4:Eu3+ microspheres are prepared by a facile but effective two-step way.•An enhanced luminescent intensity was obtained from the resulting microspheres.•The luminescent performance of the resulting microspheres is comparable to the bulk materials. A facile, but effective, two-step method was developed to prepare monoclinic LaPO4:Eu3+ microspheres composed of microprisms with a controllable morphology. XRD and SEM studies revealed a spherical morphology and crystalline structure for the resulting material. It was also found that LaPO4:Eu3+ microspheres prepared at 800°C showed a higher luminescent intensity than primary hexagonal LaPO4:Eu3+ microprisms. Furthermore, the luminescent performance of LaPO4:Eu3+ microspheres was demonstrated to reach the standards of the LaPO4:Eu3+ bulk material under the same conditions. These results suggest possibilities for the use of as-synthesized monoclinic LaPO4:Eu3+ microspheres as alternatives to replace intrinsically uneven bulk materials for many application areas, including light display systems and optoelectronic devices.