A Globar is used as a thermal light source for infrared spectroscopy. The preferred material for making Globar is silicon carbide that is shaped as rods or arches of various sizes. When inserted into a circuit that provides it with electric current, it emits radiation from ~ 2 to 50 micrometres wavelength via the Joule heating phenomenon. In 1962, a study showed that the emissivity of a SiC Globar between a wavelength of 0.65µm and 14.9µm ranged between 0.70 and 0.84. In 2007, research on the emissivity of Globar used computer modelling to attempt to compensate for the effect of atmospheric water vapour.