YBO3: Eu3+/Tb3+ nanocrystalline thin films were successfully deposited onto quartz glass substrates by Pechini sol-gel dip-coating method, using rare-earth nitrates and boric acid as starting materials. The crystal structure, morphology, chemical composition and photoluminescence property of the films were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and fluorescence spectrophotometer. The results of XRD, AFM, XPS and FTIR revealed that the films were composed of spherical YBO3: Eu3+/Tb3+ nanocrystals with average grain size of 80 nm. The YBO3: Eu3+ film exhibited strong orange emission at 595 nm and red emission at 615 nm, which were, respectively ascribed to the (D-5(0) -> F-7(1)) and (D-5(0) -> F-7(2)) transitions of Eu3+. The YBO3: Tb3+ film showed dominant green emission at 545 nm due to the D-5(4)-F-7(5) transition of Tb3+. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.