The Sr1.95Ba0.05 CeO4:Eu3+ phosphors are synthesized by the solid-state reaction method. The samples are characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. The XRD results reveal that the synthesized phosphors are genuine crystalline and belong to the orthorhombic structure. The intense PL emission is optimized from the PL spectra at various doping concentrations of europium ions. The results indicates that the phosphor can be effectively excited under 264 nm wavelength producing on intense emission spectrum of the synthesis material at 484 nm (blue region). The color purity of the phosphor is confirmed by CIE coordinates (x = 0.217, y = 0.265). The experimental data indicate that the prepared phosphors can be used as blue-emitting material in the field of illuminations and display devices. © 2017, Springer Science+Business Media New York.