Ce 3 + and/or Tb 3 + -doped LaPO 4 nanocrystalline thin films and their patterning were fabricated by a sol-gel process combined with soft lithography on silicon and quartz glass substrates. The results of XRD indicated that the films began to crystallize at 700 o C. The 1000 o C annealed single layer films are transparent by eyes, uniform and crack-free with a thickness of about 200 nm and an average grain size of 100 nm. Patterned thin film with different band widths (5-50 μm) were obtained by micro-molding in capillaries technique. The luminescence and energy transfer properties of Ce 3 + and Tb 3 + were studied in LaPO 4 films.