The luminescence properties of Ce

3+

-and Mn

2+

-coactivated CaSiO3 have been studied with excitation of both UV light and cathode-ray. In both cases

the red Mn

2+

emission is greatly enhanced by Ce

3+

. The very efficient Ce

3+

→Mn

2+

energy transfer has been investigated by analyzing the optical spactra of Ce

3+

and Mn

2+

as well as the decay characteristics of Ce

3+

luminescence at different Mn

2+

concentrations.The energy transfer mechanism has been explored by applying both Förster-Dexter multipolar interaction theory and Inokuti-Hirayama direct energy transfer theory. The results obtained from the two approaches are in very good agreament

which clearly expounds that the efficient energy transfer is the result of cooperative action of electric dipole-dipole and dipole-quadrupole interactions and mainly of the dipole-dipole interaction.