It commonly occurs as a detrital or diagenic mineral in sedimentary rocks and is an essential component of phosphorite ore deposits.

[6] Fluoroapatite has a mild bacteriostatic property as well, which helps decrease the proliferation of Streptococcus mutans, the predominant bacterium related to dental caries.

Synthetic fluorapatite doped with manganese-II and antimony-V formed the basis for the second generation of fluorescent tube phosphors referred to as halophosphors.

When irradiated with 253.7 nm mercury resonance radiation they fluoresced with broad emission which appeared within the range of acceptable whites.

Addition of manganese-II produced a second broad peak to appear at the red end of the emission spectrum at the expense of the antimony peak, excitation energy being transferred from the antimony to the manganese by a non radiative process and making the emitted light appear less blue and more pink.

Due to the respiratory toxicity of beryllium compounds the obsolescence of these early phosphor types were advantageous to health.

Since about 1990 the third generation tri-phosphors, three separate red, blue and green phosphors activated with rare earth ions and mixed in proportions to produce acceptable whites, have largely replaced halophosphors.