Eu-doped ZnO nanoneedles with different doping concentrations were prepared via the facile hydrothermal method.The crystal structure,morphology and photoluminescence property of the ZnO nanoneedles were characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS),photoluminescence spectroscopy(PL) and Raman spectroscopy.The results show that the europium ions are incorporated into the crystal lattice of ZnO matrix in trivalent ions.The nanoneedles are 2-3 μm in length and 100 nm in the tip diameter.PL and Raman measurements indicate that higher Eu^3+ doping concentration may destroy the crystallization of the nanoneedles and decrease the ratio of IUV/IDLE,which is mainly due to the more defects in the doped ZnO nanoneedles.And the characteristic red emissions of Eu^3+ ions are found by the PL spectroscopy with the Eu^3+doping concentration increasing,which are attributed to the ^5D0→^7F0,^5D0→^7F1 and ^5D0→^7F2 transitions.