A series of CeF(3-)doped Y3Al5O12 (YAG:CeF3) phosphor, CeO2-doped Y3Al5O12 (YAG:Ce2O3) phosphor and 5 wt% BaF2 added YAG:Ce2O3 (YAG:Ce2O3+BaF2) phosphor were successfully synthesized by a solid-state reaction method. The microstructure, morphology, luminescence spectra, luminescence quantum yield (QY) and thermal quenching of the phosphors were investigated. The QY of YAG:CeF3 phosphor is 91% but the QY of YAG:Ce2O3 phosphor is just 80%. At 150 degrees C, the luminescence intensity of YAG:CeF3 phosphor, YAG:Ce2O3 phosphor and YAG:Ce2O3+BaF2 phosphor was 85%, 86% and 89% of that measured at 25 degrees C, respectively. The comprehensive performance of the white LED lamp employing YAG:CeF3 phosphor is even better than that of the white LED lamp employing YAG:Ce2O3+BaF2 phosphor. The experimental results show that it is a promising flux-free method to synthesize Ce3+-doped YAG phosphor by employing CeF3 as the Ce3+ source. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.