A novel red luminescent material Li 0.9 Y 0.9 Zr 0.1 O 2 doped with trivalent europium ions and dysprosium ions was synthesized by solution–combustion method. X-ray diffractometry, transmission electron microscopy and optical spectroscopy were used to valuate the crystallinity, the morphological characterization and the optical properties of the products. The results showed that combustion at 800°C was enough to obtain highly crystalline and phase-pure samples. Photoluminescence spectra of Li 0.9 Y (0.9−x−y) Zr 0.1 O 2 :Eu x 3+ ,Dy y 3+ samples indicated the dominant red emissions (613nm) at a single-wavelength ultraviolet excitation (395nm) due to 5 D 0 → 7 F 2 transition. The relation between the luminescence intensity and dopant concentration was also discussed.